Despite having released by Everton on 10 June, along with fellow stalwarts Leon Osman and Tony Hibbert, Stephen Pienaar remains one of the best footballers South Africa has produced.
Pienaar first made a name for himself with Ajax Amsterdam, winning two Dutch Eredivisie titles in 2001/02 and 2003/04, before moving to Borussia Dortmund in 2006.
Despite having released by Everton on 10 June, along with fellow stalwarts Leon Osman and Tony Hibbert, Stephen Pienaar remains one of the best footballers South Africa has produced.
Pienaar first made a name for himself with Ajax Amsterdam, winning two Dutch Eredivisie titles in 2001/02 and 2003/04, before moving to Borussia Dortmund in 2006.
However, Pienaar is most famous for his exploits with Everton in the Barclays Premier League. During his tenure with the team, which began in 2007, he won the hearts of fans – even scooping the Everton player of the season award for the 2009/10 season. This led to many people pinning Bafana Bafana's 2010 world cup hopes on him.
However, Pienaar had a modest world cup to say the least. Although he hit some good passes during Bafana's three group stage games, he failed to replicate his scintillating Premier League form at the time.
Nonetheless, Pienaar secured a transfer to Totenham Hotspur in 2011, having reportedly turned down Chelsea, who were the defending Premier League Champions. The move did not go well and Pienaar only managed 10 league games before transferring back to Everton – where he has played his football ever since.
With Bafana, Pienaar played 62 times and was included in the 2002 and 2010 world cup squads. Nevertheless, some argue that he was a traitor to Bafana Bafana after his 2012 decision to retire from the national team.
Pienaar was 30 and the time and certainly could have had another good three or four good years with the national team. He could also have provided leadership – something which Bafana Bafana have lacked since he and Aaron Mokoena hung up their international boots.
The national team has never had a permanent long term captain since Mokoena left the fold. The captaincy has since been given to Itumeleng Khune; Dean Furman; and Bongani Khumalo, but nobody has truly claimed it as their own.
However from another perspective, he should be respected for his decision. Travelling with the national team is an exhausting process – especially for African stars plying their trade in Europe, as they usually have to travel further than their European counterparts plying their trade in the same leagues.
By retiring from the national team, Pienaar may have also helped to prolong his career though avoiding added body strain.
Although he is now 34 and passed his prime, most Everton fans will leave with good memories of Pienaar and this will probably not be the last that we see of him. He has not indicated any will to retire altoghether.
Some transfer reports have indicated that he may go back to Ajax Amsterdam. Ajax, who are a fairly young squad, may consider signing him to add much-needed experience.
Given that he is an experienced Premier League player with 229 appearances in total for Everton, I would not be surprised Pienaar attracted offers from America's Major League Soccer.
He has also reportedly attracted interest from Mamelodi Sundowns – and in April, he was quoted by Soccer Laduma as having said that he dreamed of finishing his career in South Africa – more specifically at Ajax Cape Town.
Wherever Pienaar goes, his success at Everton has ensured that supporters across the globe will remember his contribution to football over the last few years fondly.
Perhaps it is time for Bafana fans to forgive, forget, and follow suit.
