Blom, Chiefs negotiations hit a snag

Njabulo Blom’s contract extension negotiations with Kaizer Chiefs appear to have hit a snag after the club tried to tie him down for a longer period.

According to information gathered by Soccer Laduma, the player’s camp is aiming to negotiate a package that is “way too high” from the club’s perspective.

A Siya source explained, “It is still early days of negotiations, but it seems like he needs to show more commitment if he wants to secure a contract extension at a time the club is looking at rebuilding around players like him.”

Blom was conspicuous by his absence when Amakhosi eliminated Stellenbosch FC from the MTN8 through a penalty shootout on Sunday.

It was not immediately clear whether the breakdown in negotiations led to the player being dropped from the matchday squad, but it has not gone unnoticed that he was also dropped from the starting line-up during the match against Maritzburg United.

It was, however, established that he had been dropped as a result of a “below-par” performance by his own high standards the previous week against RoyalAM.

Blom has proven to be one of Chiefs’ finest development products in recent years. He was promoted to the first team during 2019 due to his versatility to play with distinction either as a fullback or in defensive midfield.

Blom featured in 28 of the club’s 30 league outings last season, which started with Stuart Baxter at the helm and ended with Arthur Zwane seeing out the campaign.