Marvelous Nakamba

Location: Birmingham, England

The legendary Villa Park, established in 1897, will host the Zimbabwean midfielder for the foreseeable future. (Image: Instagram)

Born in Hwange Zimbabwe, he spent his development years with the youth academy of Bulawayo based football club Highlanders, before signing for local side Bantu rovers as a 16-year old in 2010. Two years later, he got his first break, after being scouted and signed by French Ligue 1 club AS Nancy. The midfielder mostly featured for Nancy’s b-side, racking up 32 appearances. On 9 May 2014, he made his professional and first-team debut, as Nancy overcame Angers SCO 3-1 in a Ligue 1 fixture. On 13 August 2014, the Zimbabwean travelled to the Netherlands to sign for Vitesse Arnhem on a four-year deal. He made his debut a month later, coming on as a late substitute in a 6-2 win over Dordrecht. In his second season for Vitesse, the midfielder grew in stature, cementing his place in the first team to make 31 appearances in the Eredivisie. He capped off a successful campaign with a 2-0 victory over AZ Alkmaar in the final of the 2016/17 KNVB Cup. Soon the man from Zimbabwe would be on the move again, signing for Belgian First Division side Club Brugge. The midfielder was instrumental in the clubs success, an indispensable part of midfield, he propelled Brugge to the 2017/18 Belgian First Division championship. In the summer of 2019, the Zimbabwean midfielder signed for newly promoted Premier League side Aston Villa.