What the Siya crew has been told…

Amakhosi are obviously already planning for next season, and one of the big causalities could be striker Leonardo Castro. Siya sources have indicated that the club is set to make a decision on the Columbian in the coming months.

According to one source, Chiefs have questioned whether there has been a return on investment given his current goal per game ratio, and that the Soweto giants are assessing their options.

In last week’s edition of Soccer Laduma, the Siya crew reported that Chiefs have identified strikers Jesse Were and Idris Mbombo as potential targets in what could be their newlook strike force next season. And corridor talk at the club is that there might not be enough room for Castro if Amakhosi are able to win the race for Mbombo and Were, who is also on Mamelodi Sundowns’ radar.

From Castro’s days at Sundowns, it was evident that he does not want to sit on the bench or be involved in a rotation system. Like all top players he wants to play week in and week out.

Despite finding the back of the net on the weekend, the Siya source indicated that the club is evaluating the Colombian’s return and establishing whether or not they should table a new lucrative deal for the striker or make space on their wagebill for new arrivals.

A second Siya source has informed the Siya crew that the club is yet to make their intentions clear, but are evaluating what it would take to tie the 29-year-old down on a new contract. However, the source did state that if Chiefs were to receive an attractive offer from another club, it’s highly likely that they would be open to selling the player.

According to Siya sources, Castro earns around R3 million per annum at Chiefs. That’s usually the bracket for the club’s high-profile players and expectations would be for Castro to find the back of the net regularly. It is believed that Chiefs would have to offer Castro an equally big-money deal in order for him to extend his spell, but a lot will depend on their potential new arrivals. If Chiefs do sign new firepower in attack, they could be reluctant to offer a big-money deal and instead opt to offload Castro and cash in on his signature. In addition, Amakhosi would need to free up foreign space if they were to be beat Sundowns to Were’s signature and convince Mbombo to join finally join them after their U-turn on assessing him in June last year. Siya sources have suggested that Castro could be the likely sacrifice if it makes good business sense for the Soweto giants.