Van Wyk in career best at Sundowns

New Mamelodi Sundowns signing Antonio Van Wyk is already having the best season of his career after just two months following his move from Austrian club SV Ried — and he is silencing the doubters in style.

Van Wyk's acquisition did not hog the headlines when he arrived at Chloorkop, as the challenge was up to him to show South Africans that he still had the hunger after spending two years in the Austrian Bundesliga without exactly making an impact, in so far as the statistics were concerned.

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A modest record in Austria

In two seasons at Ried, after he was signed from Stellenbosch ahead of the 2024/25 season, the 24-year-old had a combined total of only four goals and seven assists — a return that would have raised eyebrows about why the Brazilians brought him back to the PSL.

To put it into context, the former Stellies winger scored only six goals in 78 matches for The Maroons since he was promoted from the reserves in July 2021 — making his current form all the more remarkable.

Hitting the ground running

The Cape Town-born winger has already scored four goals for Sundowns in just two months and has been on form since he scored and had an assist on his debut in a 3-2 extra-time win over Polokwane City in the MTN8 quarter-final in August.

Van Wyk was the hero for Masandawana on Saturday, scoring in the dying minutes of stoppage time to salvage a 1-1 draw against Chippa United in a rain-soaked Buffalo City Stadium in a Betway Premiership encounter.

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Investment starting to pay off

According to Transfermarkt records, Sundowns paid a transfer fee in the region of €1 million (R19 million) to bring Van Wyk to Chloorkop — and that investment is starting to pay off in spectacular fashion.

Miguel Cardoso's charges have scored a massive 19 goals in eight league matches, their highest ever tally at this stage of the season, with Van Wyk proving to be an increasingly influential figure in the Portuguese coach's attack.

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Antonio Van Wyk Betway Premiership Mamelodi Sundowns Masandawana