JOHANNESBURG // South African Premier League footballer Mondli Cele died Sunday after the car he was a passenger in plunged into a river near eastern city Pietermaritzburg.
The tragedy occurred a few hours after the 27-year-old midfielder scored for Maritzburg United in a 3-3 Premiership thriller against famed Soweto club Orlando Pirates.
Cele and another passenger died when the driver lost control of the car, a provincial transport department spokesman said. A third passenger survived.
“His character on and off the field was impeccable,” said Maritzburg chairman Farook Kadodia, referring to Cele.
Premier Soccer League spokesman Lux September said: “Mondli scored a beautiful goal and it was to be his last celebration.”
Cele was included in the preliminary South Africa squad for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea, but did not make the final 23.
His death overshadowed a dramatic weekend of Premiership action highlighted by visiting Pirates coming from three goals behind to hold bottom club Maritzburg.
Cele put United ahead after eight minutes at a packed 10,000-seater Harry Gwala Stadium by side-footing a cutback past goalkeeper Brighton Mhlongo.
Zimbabwean Evans Rusike, who created the opening goal, scored on 32 minutes and Ugandan Brian Onyango gave United a three-goal advantage soon after.
Thabo Rakhale pulled one back within a minute and captain Thabo Matlaba set up a thrilling second half by scoring a second goal for the Pirates early in the second half.
Rattled Maritzburg clung to the lead until 10 minutes from time when Kermit Erasmus equalised, and the visitors looked the likelier winners in frenetic climax of a memorable match.
Maritzburg remain bottom, one point below Pretoria University, while 2015 CAF Confederation Cup runners-up Pirates lie 11th after a disappointing one-win-in-seven start to the season.
At the other end of the table, a see-saw struggle for Premiership supremacy tilted back in favour of record six-time champions Mamelodi Sundowns.
They won a home derby against Pretoria University 2-1 through goals from Zimbabwean Khama Billiat and Colombian Leonardo Castro to lead Mpumalanga Black Aces on goal difference.
Aces upset Wits 2-1 in Johannesburg thanks to two goals from veteran Zambia striker Collins Mbesuma, the leading Premiership scorer this season with 10 goals.
Sundowns and Aces have 30 points each one round before the halfway stage and Wits are a point behind.
Defending champions Kaizer Chiefs stayed in touch, five points off the pace, with a 1-0 victory at Bloemfontein Celtic courtesy of a penalty by Zimbabwean Willard Katsande.
Thobani Mncwango of Polokwane City became the first Premiership footballer to score more than twice in a game this season by grabbing four in a 4-1 triumph over SuperSport United.
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Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
Results
United States beat UAE by three wickets
United States beat Scotland by 35 runs
UAE v Scotland – no result
United States beat UAE by 98 runs
Scotland beat United States by four wickets
Fixtures
Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland
Admission is free
Salah in numbers
€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of €39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.
13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
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Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
RESULTS
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (Turf) 2,200m
Winner: M'A Yaromoon, Jesus Rosales (jockey), Khalifa Al Neydai (trainer)
5.30pm: Khor Al Baghal – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: No Riesgo Al Maury, Antonio Fresu, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
6pm: Khor Faridah – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: JAP Almahfuz, Royston Ffrench, Irfan Ellahi
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Mahmouda, Pat Cosgrave, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: AS Jezan, George Buckell, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
7.30pm: Khor Laffam – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Dolman, Antonio Fresu, Bhupath Seemar