Exclusive: Ronwen Williams Aspires to Match Man Utd’s Andre Onana

South African international Ronwen Williams describes being nominated alongside Andre Onana at the 2024 CAF Awards as an incredible achievement.

The 32-year-old stole the spotlight with a double win at the ceremony in Marrakech, as the Confederation of African Football honored top-performing African footballers from the year under review.

Following his recognition as CAF Interclub Player of the Year, Williams went on to secure the Best African Goalkeeper award, edging out the Manchester United star. 

However, he missed out on a hat-trick, finishing behind Ademola Lookman, Achraf Hakimi, and Simon Adingra in the African Player of the Year category.

Before his CAF recognition, Bafana Bafana captain made history as the first African to be nominated for the Lev Yashin Award at the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony.

WILLIAMS SETS SIGHTS ON EMULATING ONANA

Among the two awards he won at the CAF Awards, the Goalkeeper of the Year prize holds special significance for the Mamelodi Sundowns star, having been nominated alongside Onana.

He believes the nomination is a testament to his progress toward reaching the level of Cameroon international, a player he aspires to emulate.

"It's an amazing achievement, rubbing shoulders with the greats. He's doing an amazing work," Willaims told SportsBoom.com.

"He's taken the goalkeeper's position to the highest level in the way that he plays. We all aspire to be like him because he is playing at the highest level.

"He’s doing it week in, week out for country as well. I'm just glad that I'm on the same level or trying to be on the same level as him."

Williams rose to prominence at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations, saving four penalties in South Africa’s quarter-final shootout victory against Cape Verde.

However, his team settled for bronze after losing to Nigeria in the semi-finals, before defeating DR Congo in the third-place match.

COMMITTED TO STAYING AT SUNDOWNS

Williams has attracted interest from top European clubs, but when questioned about his future, he expressed pride in continuing with the Brazilians.

After spending 12 years at Supersport United, Williams joined the Loftus Versfeld Stadium giants in 2022 and has since secured two South African Premier Division titles.

"I'm happy at Mamelodi Sundowns. We've got a good thing going, " he continued.

"We've got a great season ahead of us and we've got the Club World Cup to look forward to. If something comes along and the club is happy for me to go, then I would obviously consider it. 

"But I'm happy at the club and we've got good and great things to look forward to."

The Brazilians are set to compete in Group F of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup against Ulsan Hyundai (South Korea), Borussia Dortmund (Germany), and Fluminense (Brazil) when the tournament kicks off in the United States from June 13 to July 13.

WILLIAMS CONFIDENT ABOUT BAFANA’S AFCON AND WORLD CUP PROSPECT

South Africa missed the last three FIFA World Cup editions in Brazil (2014), Russia (2018), and Qatar (2022), and will be aiming for a return in 2026.

Fully aware of the expectations placed on him as captain and one of Africa's top players, Williams is confident that South Africa will not miss out on the next World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

"We've started well, we moved to the first position at one point. It's in our hands now," he added.

"I think we've got six games left and I think four of those will be played in Southern Africa. Hopefully, we can use that to our advantage. 

"Hopefully, we can go all the way. We are looking forward to it and I think we've got the right team, the right technical team to go and achieve it."

To make their World Cup dream a reality, Hugo Broos' team must navigate past Nigeria, Lesotho, Benin Republic, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe in Group C.

Williams is also optimistic that his team can have a strong performance at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, scheduled for Morocco.

He stated: "It's a year from now and hopefully we can keep the good performance that we've had over the last two years. 

"We haven't lost many games. We're on the upward trajectory and we're playing well and we've been picking up good results. 

"Hopefully, going into Morocco 2025, we can have some good form and hopefully we can go a step ahead."