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Africa, Europe, Asia, and South/Central America are the most recognised football continents in the world. South Africa has been recently dominating European Football Leagues these past 3 seasons. This makes sense that they’ve been on the rise. Especially, after hosting the 2010 World Cup.

Several young players that have recently been climbing to the top include Thakgalo Leshabela, Kgaogelo Chauke, Bradley Cross, Keagan Dolly, Janine van Dyke, and more.

Yet, the top four players to discuss would be Leshabela, Chauke, Cross and Dolly. Two that are a part of England’s Premier League.

Top 2 Players in the Premier League

The Premier League is the most-watched sporting event annually, excluding the years of the  Olympics. There’s a mass global following with fans from all corners of the world. It’s also one of the events every year that finds fans forming fantasy football league inspired events and has many punters placing bets on their favourite teams with the best football odds across a plethora of betting sites.

Thakgalo Khanya Leshabela:

This 21-year-old midfielder plays for Leicester City of the EPL. Leshabela’s premier game was back in March of this year where his team beat Sheffield United 5-0. His career started in 2016 and he has been in 60+ games since then. Leshabela had played for Claude Puel’s squad for the Carabao Cup back in the 2018-2019 season. Yet, they did not win that cup. Leshabela was even nominated for the Academy Player of the Year Award in 2018/2019 too.

Kgaogelo Chauke:

Chauke is a player for the Southampton team where he plays as a centre midfielder. His professional debut with the team took place during the league’s FA Cup win. They beat the Shrewsbury Town team back in January of 2021. Chauke is only 18 years old and has begun his senior professional career. He is one of the six qualified players that are in the Premier League this season. The others include the before-mentioned Leshabela, Bradley Cross, Nikola Tavares, Max McMillan, and Percy Tau.

Top Player in Germany’s Bundesliga

Bradley Cross:

Cross originally began his career as a defender for Germany’s Schalke’s junior U-19 Club. He played for Germany for two seasons. As of right now, this 20-year-old player has transferred over to Newcastle United. Back when he played with Germany he started in 25 games over both seasons and has started 20 times this season.

Top Players in France’s Ligue 1

Keagan Dolly:

Dolly is a 28-year-old midfielder for France’s Montpellier Club. Dolly is older than the other players mentioned and has been playing since 2013. Dolly began his career in South Africa with the Cape Town Spurs. Dolly has appeared in 21 games and has been in 5 Cup games. Three of which he won. These 3 include the PSL Cup, the League Cup, and the CAF Champions League Cup.

Summary

Young players have been moving to European Leagues in the past few years such as the ones mentioned above. There are plenty more to look out for this season. For example, many women from South Africa have transferred over too such as Janine van Wyk. Wyk is playing for Scotland’s Glasgow City FC as a defender. There’s also, Thembi Kgatlana who scored the first goal in the 2019 FIFA’S Women’s World Cup. She’s a forward for Eibar in Spain. It’ll be interesting to see how many more players begin to dominate the European Leagues this upcoming seasons.