Midfielder Haruna Niyonzima is in high spirits as he opens a new chapter with Libyan Premier League side Al Ta'awn. The Rwanda international was Thursday, January 19, given a rousing reception from the club's supporters prior to his official unveiling as their new signing. Niyonzima left AS Kigali last week after agreeing to join the Libyan club on a one-and-a-half-year deal. He will be hoping to join his team which now sits sixth on the league table with 12 points after six league matches. Niyonzima has been at the heart of AS Kigali’s impressive season so far as they finished the first round of Rwanda Premier League at the top of the table with 30 points. He now shifts focus on quickly adapting to his new team so he can help them push for a league title this season. Niyonzima started his football career with Etincelles before he was spotted and signed by Rayon Sports in 2006. He joined rival’s APR the following year where he played for three-and-a-half years prior to his 2011 move to Yanga in 2011. He won a number of titles with the military side including the 2010 CECAFA Kagame Cup. Regarded as one of the most decorated players in the region, the veteran made history in June 2019 as he became the first player to win the Tanzania Premier League title five consecutive seasons, having won it three times in a row with Yanga, between 2015 and 2017, before helping Simba to lift the title twice during the 2017/2018 and 2018/2019 seasons. Niyonzima made his senior international debut for Rwanda in 2006 is so far Rwanda’s most-capped player with 105 appearances, scoring six times in the process.
