Durban City FC chairman Farook Kadodia has explained how the 2025 AFCON triggered his decision to go all out in signing Zimbabwe international right-back Emmanuel Jalai.
Jalai was confirmed as a Durban City FC player on 22 January, ending a six-year stint with Harare giants Dynamos to join Betway Premiership side Durban City. Prior to joining the KwaZulu-Natal side, Jalai turned down several offers to join Zimbabwe PSL clubs, including the 2025 Champions, Scottland FC.
He chose to stay put at Dynamos, patiently waiting for a club beyond Zimbabwe’s borders that would match his ambition. And the 2025 AFCON proved to be a turning point for him, after providing the platform he needed to be seen.
At AFCON, Jalai put up commanding performances particularly in the first match against Egypt where he provided the assist for a goal that was scored by former PSL star Prince Dube in the 2-1 defeat. Jalai played in all three group matches against Egypt, Angola and Bafana Bafana respectively.
That turned out to be the reason, Durban City FC chairman Kadodia went all out to sign the Zimbabwe international, who was a free agent following the expiry of his Dynamos contract on 31 December 2025.
WHAT DURBAN CITY CHAIRMAN KADODIA
In an interview with FARPost, Kadodia said Jalai’s impressive shows at 2025 AFCON put the icing on the cake, for them to confirm if he is worth acquisition.
“What I saw at AFCON really impressed me and I immediately sparked my interest. There was no need to stop and that yielded a result. It would have been unfortunate, had we not got him especially after missing that striker [Washington Navaya],” Kadodia told FARPost.
“He’s the player that will complete our defence, and we know that going into the new season, we have a complete defence that’s sorted. He will form an integral part in the team.
“I think the last one, yeah, I saw some games before that when he was playing for Dynamos, and then I believed that he needs to play on the big stage. When he played on the big stage, I said yes, this is the boy that needs to come to Durban City.”
Jalai has so far featured in one match for Durban City, and is in line to start when they take on Chippa United on Saturday at Buffalo City Stadium. At the time of his departure from Dynamos, Jalai was the team captain. He helped them win the 2023, 2024 and 2025 Chibuku Super Cup titles respectively.
RELATED STORY: Warriors defender Emmanuel Jalai set for Durban City switch