What the Siya crew has been told…

Information reaching the Siya crew is that Bongani Zungu’s parent club Amiens SC are still in talks with Glasgow Rangers to make his loan move at the Scottish Premier League giants permanent.

The 28-year-old’s gametime has been limited under manager Steven Gerrard, which has led to doubts over whether the ex-Liverpool midfielder is keen to hold on to Zungu beyond the current season.

But it’s understood that talks are ongoing between Amiens and Rangers, who have an option to buy Zungu outright from the French club at the end of the campaign.

His French outfit were relegated after the Ligue1 season was halted prematurely almost a year ago, due to the Coronavirus pandemic, meaning Zungu was destined for life in the lower division. Given that there had been interest in the player elsewhere prior to the club being demoted to Ligue 2, and the fact that his contract was due to expire in June this year, Amiens tied him down to an extension.

Looking forward in protecting their interest, the French club have ensured that they get something out of the investment made on Zungu in the three years he spent with them, before he was loaned out to Rangers. Before the loan deal could be signed off, however, the Bafana Bafana star penned a new deal, which keeps him on Amiens’ books until June 2022.

Zungu would have been eligible to sign a pre-contract with a club of his choice last month under the previous agreement, which is why the club was eager to cash in. However, with Rangers only settling for a loan – with an option to buy – they simply had to find a way to make sure that they would still benefit from Zungu leaving.

Siya sources have informed the crew that Zungu wants to stay and develop under Gerrard, but the transfer figure, as well as his behaviour and game-time, will be the determining factor.

In October, the fee stood at R77 million, but that appears to have now been revised due to COVID-19 and is reported to be around R58 million.

Rangers also know that Amiens have to sell the player at the end of the season, otherwise he is likely to return to France, only to sign a pre-contract elsewhere in January next year, which means that he could leave as a free agent!

With the current economic climate, they can’t risk that – and Rangers will be aware that they then have the bargaining power.