Lyle Foster and 8 Other South Africans Who Scored in the English Premier League

• Lyle Foster's goal for Burnley made him the ninth South African to score in the English Premier League
• Benni McCarthy leads the way when it comes to scoring in England, as he netted 37 goals in the EPL
• Steven Pienaar, Quinton Fortune, and Mark Fish all represented more than one team in England

The English Premier League is the proving ground for some of the world’s best players.

Over the years, many top-name talents have plied their trade in the league to varying degrees of success and failure.

South Africa has also been blessed to have footballers competing in the toughest league, and some can even brag that they managed to find the back of the net while playing in the EPL.

With Lyle Foster now etching his name alongside some greats, Sports Brief looks at the nine South African stars who can boast about having scored at least once in the league.

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Football

Benni McCarthy – 37 goals

Arguably South Africa’s greatest striker, McCarthy was a renowned goal-scoring machine in Europe and, as a result, was signed by a Premier League side.

After scoring 57 goals for Porto, McCarthy was signed by Blackburn Rovers, where he netted 52 times. 37 of those goals came in the league, Transfermarkt reported.

He also made 14 appearances for West Ham United but failed to find the back of the net for the Hammers.

Shaun Bartlett – 24 goals

His Cape Town Spurs side may be struggling for goals in the DStv Premiership, but Bartlett certainly knew how to find the back of the net as a player.

Bartlett made 137 appearances for Charlton Athletic, where he scored 24 league goals and two in the FA Cup.

He also won the coveted Goal of the Season award for his beautiful strike against Leicester City in 2001.

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Football

Steven Pienaar – 22 goals

Having started his journey with Ajax Cape Town’s Youth team, it wasn’t long before Pienaar was promoted to the senior squad and then eventually signed by Dutch giants Ajax.

In the 2007/ 08 season, he moved from Borussia Dortmund to Everton, where he became a club legend.

Pienaar scored 22 goals in the league for the Merseyside club and also made appearances for Sunderland and Tottenham Hotspur.

In 2018, he was named as Everton’s first-ever international ambassador, News24 reported.

Philemon Masinga – 5 goals

A true Bafana legend, Masinga also featured in the English Premier League, where he played for Leeds United.

Nicknamed Chippa, he scored just five goals for the Elland Road side.

Masinga may not have scored many goals in the league, but will fondly be remembered for scoring the goal that took Bafana to the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

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Sadly, he passed away in 2019 after a battle with cancer, Mail and Guardian reported.

Quinton Fortune – 5 goals

Like some of the other players on the list, Fortune also played for more than one English club. The midfielder played in the Premier League for both Bolton Wanderers and Manchester United, but it was at the Red Devils where he excelled.

Fortune played 127 games for the side and was even made an assistant coach for the U/23 side after he hung up his boots.

Mark Fish – 4 goals

“Fiiiiiish” was a chant that would ring out across many a stadium whenever the former Bafana man got the ball.

Despite being a defender, Fish scored four goals in the EPL, netting twice for both Bolton Wanderers and Charlton Athletic.

As noted by Planet Football, Fish was once close to joining Manchester United as well.

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Eric Tinkler – 2 goals

Another Bafana legend, Tinkler has two goals to his name in the EPL.

The defensive-minded player scored those two for Barnsley, where he made 102 appearances.

Tinkler transitioned to coaching after he stopped playing professionally and has coached the likes of Orlando Pirates, SuperSport United, and Maritzburg United. In 2021, he was named Cape Town City’s manager, beginning a second spell at the club, The Citizen noted.

Mbulelo Mabizela – 1 goal

Old John was a colourful character, to say the least. The versatile player turned out for many South African clubs, including Pirates, Mamelodi Sundowns, AmaZulu FC, Chippa United, and Platinum Stars, to name a few.

He also played in the EPL, scoring one goal for Tottenham Hotspur in nine appearances.

While he showed a lot of promise, Mabizela also had many problems.

Described as a bad boy of football, he often went AWOL or engaged in all the wrong sorts of activities, Sowetan LIVE reported.

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Lyle Foster – 1 goal

The last, but hopefully not least, South African to score in the EPL is Lyle Foster.

Signed by Vincent Kompany’s Burnley, Foster had one of the most creative unveiling videos in recent times. He is living up to the hype created by his unveiling and took just two games to score his first goal for the club in the top flight of English football.

South Africans in the EPL

A number of South African footballers have featured in the English Premier League, where Africans have continued to do well.

The EPL remains the most-watched football league in South Africa, and some players from the country also had a great adventure in the English topflight.

Sports Brief looks at the 14 stars from the Rainbow Nation who have represented the people of Mzansi in England.