Striker swaps Sunday league for Champions League

A former student from Rotherham has climbed the football ladder from the bottom up. Manasse Kianga was playing Sunday league football as recently as 2023 As five-time Ballon d'Or nominee Yaya Toure prepares to lead his Slovan Bratislava side out against Bundesliga outfit Stuttgart in the Champions League, Rossington Main boss Ben Hunter is analysing what happened the night before in his mid-table team's clash in the ninth tier of English football. They may be separated by thousands of miles and millions of pounds, but the coaches are united by one player. Manasse Kianga was living in Rotherham and playing Sunday league football when he helped Doncaster outfit Main to promotion to their current level in 2023.

Three years later, he fired the Slovakian champions into Europe's premier competition after reportedly being promoted from the reserves due to an injury crisis. South African Kianga, 24, could make his debut in the competition later. Toure's troops began their Champions League campaign away to French giants Paris St-Germain last month and will also take on the likes of Roma and Inter Milan during the tournament's league phase. "He came to trial with Rossington and I had a look at him and straight away loved him," recalls a proud Hunter, who remains close to the forward known for his electric pace. "He was