Knowledge Musona


Knowledge Musona is a Zimbabwean professional footballer who plays as a left winger or forward for Eupen in the Belgian First Division A, on loan from Anderlecht, and the Zimbabwe national team. Previously he has played senior football in South Africa and Germany.

Personal life

Knowledge "The smiling Assassin" Musona hails from Norton, Mashonaland West and attended Lord Malvern High School in Harare. His younger brother Walter Musona is also a professional footballer.

Club career

Musona joined Kaizer Chiefs in 2009 without having made any appearance in the Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League. At Aces he played with current Kaizer Chiefs player Khama Billiat.
He was used sparingly as a substitute in the 2009–10 season but still managed to score a handful of crucial goals. In July 2010 he was awarded the PSL Club Rookie of the Year award.
The 2010–11 season proved to be Musona's break through season as he scored 15 goals in 28 league games to win the Lesley Manyathela Golden Boot which attracted the interest of European clubs such as German Bundesliga side 1899 Hoffenheim, Serbian giants Partizan and Scottish heavyweights Celtic.
On 28 July 2011, Musona signed 1899 Hoffenheim, with the player signing a five-year contract for R19,5 million. He made his debut as a substitute against SC Freiburg in a 3–1 win and scored his first goal in a 2–1 DFB Pokal win over Köln on 25 October 2011. On 18 May 2012, it was announced that Musona would join Bundesliga side Augsburg on a one-year loan for the upcoming season.
In July 2013, he left Germany moved back to his old South African club Kaizer Chiefs on a loan deal. He scored eight goals in 19 South African League matches, including a vital goal against Black Leopards which sent Kaizer Chiefs into the last 16 of the Nedbank Cup. Musona scored a hat trick in a 3–0 first-round, second-leg CAF Champions League victory over Liga Muculmana in Maputo on 6 March progressing to the next round of the competition on a 7–0 aggregate scoreline after winning 4–0 at Moses Mabhida Stadium. Musona suffered an ankle sprain in a 2–0 win over AS Vita Club in the CAF Champions League on 29 March 2014 where they lost 3–2 on aggregate. Musona ended the season with 16 goals in 25 starts in all competitions. He attracted interest from clubs in Belgium, Germany and Roda of the Netherlands. On 5 August, Musona started training with La Liga club, Granada.
On 18 December 2014, Musona signed for Belgian club Oostende, effective 1 January 2015, with the player signing a two-and-a-half-year contract for an undisclosed fee.
His agent Paschalis Tountouris stated that this move was the ideal step to revive his career. He joined Bafana Bafana midfielder Andile Jali at the Belgian club. He made his Belgian Pro League debut on 17 January 2015 in a 7–1 home defeat to K.V. Kortrijk. He was subbed off in the 67th minute, being replaced by Fernando Canesin. He scored his first competitive goal for the club on 21 February 2015 in a 3–1 home defeat to Charleroi in the league. His goal, assisted by Elimane Coulibaly, was scored in the 77th minute.
In May 2018, Musona moved to RSC Anderlecht, signing a four-year deal. This came after reported interest from another Belgian side, Standard Liège. He made his league debut for the club on the opening day of the season, coming on for Landry Dimata in the 86th minute of Anderlecht's 4–1 away victory over K.V. Kortrijk. He scored his first competitive goal for the club on 26 August 2018 in a 2–1 away defeat to Club Brugge. His goal, assisted by Ivan Santini, was scored in the 19th minute and levelled the scores at one.
In January 2019, Musona was loaned out to Lokeren until the end of the 2018–19 season. He made his league debut for the club on 19 January 2019, playing all ninety minutes of a 4–1 away defeat to Eupen. He scored his first league goal for the club on 9 February 2019 in a 2–1 home victory over Royal Antwerp. His goal, assisted by Marko Mirić, was scored in the 32nd minute.

International career

He made his national team debut in a friendly against South Africa on 3 March 2010. He is often considered to be one of the finest strikers to ever come out of Zimbabwe. He scored a blinder of a goal vs Tunisia at AFCON 2017 beating two defenders and smashing the ball beyond the goalkeeper. His goals have also helped Belgian League outfit KV Oostende. On 11 June 2017 he scored a hat trick to join other Zimbabwe hat trick heroes like the legendary Peter Ndlovu and Vitalis Takawira.

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.5 September 2010SKD Sports Complex, Paynesville
1–0
1–1
2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
2.5 June 2011Rufaro Stadium, Harare
1–0
2–1
2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
3.5 June 2011Rufaro Stadium, Harare
2–1
2–1
2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
4.8 October 2011Estádio da Várzea, Praia
2–1
2–1
2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
5.15 November 2011Rufaro Stadium, Harare
1–1
2–1
Friendly
6.15 November 2011Rufaro Stadium, Harare
2–1
2–1
Friendly
7.29 February 2012Prince Louis Rwagasore Stadium, Bujumbura
1–1
1–2
2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
8.17 June 2012National Sports Stadium, Harare
1–0
1–0
2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
9.26 March 2013Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria
1–1
2–1
2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
10.9 June 2013National Sports Stadium, Harare
1–1
4–2
2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
11.10 September 2013Orlando Stadium, Johannesburg
1–0
2–1
Friendly
12.6 September 2015Rufaro Stadium, Harare
1–1
1–1
2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
13.28 March 2016National Sports Stadium, Harare
1–0
4–0
2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
14.5 June 2016National Sports Stadium, Harare
1–0
3–0
2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
15.13 November 2016National Sports Stadium, Harare
1–0
3–0
Friendly
16.23 January 2017Stade d'Angondjé, Libreville
1–3
2–4
2017 Africa Cup of Nations
17.11 June 2017National Sports Stadium, Harare
1–0
3–0
2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
18.11 June 2017National Sports Stadium, Harare
2–0
3–0
2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
19.11 June 2017National Sports Stadium, Harare
3–0
3–0
2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
20.13 October 2018Stade des Martyrs, Kinshasa
2–0
2–1
2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
21.24 March 2019National Sports Stadium, Harare
2–0
2–0
2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification