Manasse Kianga could make his Champions League debut later, little more than two years after turning out in the ninth tier of English football and in the Rotherham and District Sunday Football League. The 24-year-old South African is now with the Slovakian champions ŠK Slovan Bratislava, who are preparing to face Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart in the league phase.
Slovan, led by five-time Ballon d’Or nominee Yaya Toure, began their Champions League campaign away to Paris St-Germain last month and will also take on the likes of Roma and Inter Milan during the tournament’s league phase. Kianga travelled with the first team to the Parc des Princes but missed out on the matchday squad, and he could now be involved in their first home fixture of the competition.
His route into the squad has been a striking one. Kianga emerged from the bench to score an injury-time winner for Slovan in the third and final round of qualifying for this year’s Champions League, and has registered two goals and two assists in the opening three matches of the club’s domestic campaign. He has more recently played and scored for Slovan’s reserves, having reportedly been promoted from that group because of an injury crisis. He can play anywhere across the front line.
Back in South Yorkshire, Rossington Main boss Ben Hunter has been following it all closely. Kianga was living in Rotherham and playing Sunday league football when he helped the Doncaster outfit win promotion to their current level in 2023, going on to score 51 goals in 115 appearances for the club. “He came to trial with Rossington and I had a look at him and straight away loved him,” Hunter said. “He was a really great guy as well and always played with a smile on his face.”
The move to Rossington came about through Kianga’s brother, Bobby, who briefly represented the club, after Kianga had moved to Rotherham in around 2017. Hunter remembers a player who was “very raw” at the time, adding: “You could see his ability in terms of his speed and physical presence, but he was quite slight. He stayed with us and he did really well – a lot of higher up teams were interested in him.” He returned to Rossington after spells at clubs higher up the non-league pyramid and played a crucial part in their 2022/23 promotion, while also turning out for Team Sport in the Rotherham and District Sunday Football League.
At the time, Kianga was studying business and accounting at Thomas Rotherham College, which also counts Jamie Vardy among its former students. Chris Walls, the college’s assistant principal, remembers him as a “popular and outstanding student and football player” who was overlooked by several professional clubs. He was part of the college’s football academy and was “the best player on the pitch every match”, says Walls. “We took him to England schoolboy trials and he made the last 30 but he couldn’t get a passport in time to be in the final squad,” he recalled. “We’re very proud of him and of the success of the football academy scheme at such a small college in Rotherham.”
Former Bradford City and Grimsby Town striker Ross Hannah, who is still playing for Rossington at the age of 40, has fond memories of their partnership. “Me and him were a real problem for defenders and teams because of the way we complemented each other,” he said. “It’s amazing the journey he has been on.” Hannah also recalled the forward’s commitment when he had no transport of his own. “There were times when he couldn’t drive he used to get lifts,” he said. “That’s the commitment. Some lads would be like: ‘I’m not bothered’. He made sure he got there. We have all spoke about it in the dressing room and we are all buzzing for him.”
The path to Bratislava was not straightforward. Difficulties obtaining a permanent work permit meant Kianga had to move back to South Africa in 2024, and Hunter was among those who travelled to court in Bradford to support him in his ultimately unsuccessful attempt to stay in England. “The world was his oyster, I really believed he could have made it pro in England,” Hunter said. “He went back to South Africa and from there made a journey across Europe and ended up where he is.”