Chippa want AWOL Zulu
● Club in talks with defender axed from Sundowns
Troubled former Mamelodi Sundowns player Siyabonga Zulu could make a dramatic return to Chippa United this week.
Chief executive Morgan Mammila confirmed on Tuesday that the club was in talks with the player’s agent to bring the defender back to Port Elizabeth.
Chippa have been struggling defensively and the club believes the experienced Zulu could perform a role in the back four.
“We are still in talks with his [Zulu’s] agent, but we have not signed him yet,” Mammila said.
Sundowns terminated the wayward but talented Zulu’s contract in his absence last week after he failed to report for duty at the club’s Chloorkop headquarters for more than a month.
The former Platinum Stars player is not new to the Chilli Boys’ structure – he spent a season at Chippa in 2015 on loan from Orlando Pirates.
The move to Chippa is dependent on the 25-year-old defender working on his fitness because he has not played competitive soccer since going AWOL at Sundowns.
He will also be asked to commit to professional behaviour and told not to disrupt the team as they begin their attempt to move out of the relegation zone.
Alban Newman, an agent at Zulu’s agency, Prosport International‚ did not want to comment on the latest developments.
Zulu was recruited to Sundowns by coach Pitso Mosimane from Platinum Stars at the beginning of the season, but the former Bafana Bafana player found playing opportunities limited.
As a result of seeing little game time‚ Zulu grew increasingly despondent and this led to several transgressions of the club’s policies.
Meanwhile, Chippa United are on the verge of parting ways with midfielder Thamsanqa Sangweni ahead of their Absa Premiership fixture against Maritzburg United at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday in Port Elizabeth.
Sangweni returned to Chippa at the start of the season after his short stint at Orlando Pirates.
A reliable source said that the 29-year-old player had been served with a letter on Tuesday morning to stop training with the team with immediate effect.
The former Mamelodi Sundowns player’s exit is part of a clear-out process that has seen 10 players laid off heading into the second half of the season.
When asked whether Sangweni had parted ways with Chippa, Mammila said: “No, not yet.
We are still looking into what is best for the team when it comes to his services.
“We are in a situation now where we are looking more into players that will fight and are hungry.
“He is not hungry enough for Chippa United.
“There is a possibility that he [Sangweni] could part ways with the team. We are in talks with him right now.”