Five-and-a-half years chase for Betway Prem debutant...
by Lovemore Moyo · KickOffIn what could have elements of the famous long walk to freedom, the man between the posts for Kruger United against Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday waited five-and-a-half years for the opportunity to play in the Betway Premiership.
His name is Marcel Dandjinou.
Benin's trusted number one
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He is Benin’s first choice goalkeeper and has been preferred by Gernot Rohr even through all the years he was playing in the Motsepe Foundation Championship.
The veteran German coach has handed him 23 caps since taking over three years ago.
Dandjinou played as first choice as Kruger won promotion and was the only keeper from the Motsepe Foundation Championship at the AFCON finals earlier this year.
The 28-year-old was the club’s first-ever representative at the AFCON finals where he played three games including the defeats to Senegal and Egypt.
He was in goals in Benin’s last match against Bafana Bafana during the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Dandjinou gets his time in the Betway Premiership
Locally, Dandjinou has waited five-and-a-half years to finally play in the Betway Premiership.
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He joined JDR Stars in the first division in January 2021 and then spent four-and-a-half years fighting countless battles for the club before moving to Kruger United last year.
His representative, Michel Sinha, had several attempts to get him into the Betway Premiership in previous years which included Chippa United amongst other clubs
"I took him from a club in Benin to South Africa, and his first trial was at Cape Town All Stars," his agent Michel Sinha told KickOff.com before.
Dandjinou's long walk
"I paid for his food and accommodation for two weeks while he was there.
"The goalkeeper coach at the time was Calvin Marlin, and he really wanted him at the club, but they didn’t sign him for other reasons."
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"So, from there, I bought a bus ticket from Cape Town to Pretoria, where he even stayed with me for a few days before impressing at JDR Stars.
"The JDR boss (Nditsheni Nemasisi) was impressed from the first day and signed him a week later.
"He is now with Kruger, where I feel he will perform well again.
"I think he is the only keeper from the First Division who will be going to the AFCON finals at the end of the year, which will be of benefit to Kruger," says Sinha.
Related tags
2025 Africa Cup Of Nations Benin Betway Premiership Kruger United Motsepe Foundation Championship News