Tournament News
Germany eye Khune and Teko
2010-07-28 07:48
Email | Print
Bafana Bafana duo of goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune and midfielder Teko Modise’s dream of playing overseas might soon be realized after a German Bundesliga side expressed an interest in them.
Khune and Modise’s manager Jazzman Mahlakgane revealed that he was hoping to exchange further correspondence with the Germany side this week to facilitate the proposed move to the club he did not wish to name until everything has been finalized.
“I’m waiting for them to send us an invite for the duo to undergo trials and will take it from there,” said Mahlakgane. “Unfortunately I cannot divulge the club’s name until everything has been and the players are really looking forward to it,” he added.
At the same time Mahlakgane expressed his frustration over another of his clients - Siphiwe Tshabalala, the Kaizer Chiefs winger who scored the Fifa 2010 World Cup opening goal for South Africa against Mexico at Soccer City.
Turkish Premier League side Sivasspor offered €500 000 for the Bafana Bafana midfield, but it was turned down by the club because they felt the player was worth much more than they were putting on the table.
“They (Sivasspor) are not happy with Shaba’s transfer fee,” said Mahlakgane. “They claim what we are demanding for Shabba is too much. That is why we turned down their offer but fortunately there are other offers on the table but we will be able to ascertain for sure towards the end of the week.
“The offer from the Turks was from Shabba’s personal point of view very lucrative. But sadly what they offered his club was unacceptable and in turn they were not prepared to budge or improve their initial offer and that is why it fell off.”
According to Mahlakgane, Shabba was offered a R500 000 monthly salary and while personally that would have been a huge amount for the player, the same cannot be said about what they offered his club which was too low. But at least Mahlakgane revealed that there have been more offers for Tshabalala from England, Netherlands as well as France, with the offer from the latter country very encouraging. “If I was dealing with free agents, it would have been another story,” explains Mahlakgane. “I do not think that they expected the World Cup was going to be a success,” Mahlakgane concluded.
It’s now a norm for local clubs to demand massive transfer fees. Mamelodi Sundowns defender Siboniso Gaxa boycotted the club’s training sessions for two weeks in protest after the club turned down an offer from Belgium Pro League club Lierse SK because they alleged their offer was bellow their expectations.
The player on the other hand believed the club had reneged on their initial promise to release him should an offer from Europe land on their table and in a huff, boycotted the club’s training although he has since reconciled with the club and is now in camp with the rest of the squad.
