Kaizer Chiefs Rusike signing in process
YOUNG Warriors international Matthew Rusike was last night edging closer to a deal amid revelations that he secured a three-year deal that could make him the fifth Zimbabwean on the books of ABSA Premiership giants Kaizer Chiefs this season.
Rusike's intended move to Ajax Cape Town fell through, paving the way for a move to Amakhosi, who have reportedly always shown interest in the former Monomotapa and Jomo Cosmos forward.
Despite showing strong interest in him, the Soweto giants had to contend with waiting on Matthew Rusike as the Young Warriors forward spent the last fortnight at Ajax Cape Town where a deal had seemed imminent.
But it emerged at the end of last week that Ajax Cape Town failed to agree terms with Matthew Rusike, paving the way for the young Zimbabwean to make his way to Chiefs.
Rusike, who spent the past season at Jomo Cosmos, has been training with Ajax for the past fortnight with a view of signing for the club but has left after failing to agree terms with the club on his personal terms.
George Comitis, the Ajax chief executive officer, confirmed that they were keen on securing Mathew Rusike.
"We couldn't agree terms with the player and he has now left. I am sure he has something else elsewhere. He is a good player that we would have wanted to have in our books but we couldn't," Comitis told KickOff.com.
But there is a strong possibility that the 22-year-old could now sign up for Chiefs should his manager Edzai Kasinauyo and the striker agree terms with Amakhosi.
There are also indications that Matthew also has another option of linking up with Danish club Aalborg BK. But as of last night it was Chiefs, for whom Football Manager Bobby Motaung is a great admirer of Zimbabwean players for their talent and work ethics, who were understood to be in talks with the Matthew Rusike camp and inching closer to a deal to snap up the player.
Repeated efforts to get a comment from Kasinauyo, who is currently in South Africa, did not yield results but sources indicated that Amakhosi were dangling a three-year deal for the player. The fact that Rusike will join a local club as a non-foreigner as he holds a South African identity document having been born in the country to a South African mother, would also ensure there are less complications in terms of meeting the Chiefs foreign quota.
"He qualifies to play as a non-foreigner because his mother is South African and his father is Zimbabwean.
"He is a Zimbabwean and he holds a Zimbabwean passport hence he has played for the National Under-17 and Under-23 sides but of course, it is the technicality on the status of his mother that makes him eligible to play as a non-foreigner," the sources said.
Matthew's contract with Jomo Cosmos, who were relegated to the National First Division at the end of the 2011-12 season, is also understood to have expired.
Should Mathew secure a deal to move to Naturena he would he would join fellow Zimbabwean internationals -defenders Zhaimu Jambo and Lincoln Zvasiya, striker Kingstone Nkatha and midfielder Willard Katsande -who are already on the Amakhosi books.
In fact, Chiefs had six Zimbabweans on their books at the end of last season but they decided to off-load the veteran pair of centre back Thomas Sweswe and gritty midfielder Tinashe Nengomasha, who are now with ambitious Bidvest Wits. Former Aces Youth Academy and Black Mambas striker Abass Amidu was also on the Chiefs books last season.
But the young striker never had a chance to play first team football at Chiefs and has since been loaned to fellow Premiership side Black Leopards in a deal that also saw Nkatha arriving from Lidhoda Duvha. Ajax Cape Town have in the meantime completed the signing of Nigerian defender James Okwuosa.
Comitis revealed that they are planning to release one of the six foreign players in their books as they are only allowed to register five.
The six foreigners at Ajax are Sander Westerveld, Khama Billiat, Tafadzwa Rusike, Koen van de Laak, George Akpabio and the new signing Okwuosa.
Although Comitis chose not to mention the name of the foreign player to be sacrificed, reports from Cape Town indicated that the most likely candidate is former CAPS United winger Tafadzwa Rusike, whose Urban Warriors career appears to have been blighted by injuries.
Tafadzwa Rusike has not shone to his true potential at the Urban Warriors and has had to live in the shadows of his countryman Billiat.
"We need to let one go because we cannot register all six," said Comitis.
Source : AllAfrica.com
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