Siyethemba Sithebe. Photo: Backpagepix
Sithebe’s agent opens up about ‘sad situation’ at AmaZulu
Although Siyethemba Sithebe is in training with AmaZulu, his agent suggests Benni McCarthy has been blocked from picking him.
Siyethemba Sithebe. Photo: Backpagepix
Sithebe has been frozen out at AmaZulu after his decision to agree to a pre-contract with AmaKhosi incensed club boss Sandile Zungu, while Benni McCarthy has revealed that the fallout has left the club “with a problem”.
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Sithebe’s current AmaZulu deal is set to expire at the end of the current season in June this year, after which he will head to Naturena ahead of the of the 2022-2023 season.
Zungu has previously hit out at Chiefs, stating that the Soweto giants weren’t honest in the deal involving Sithebe, and he suggested they could take the case the legal route.
It’s alleged that Chiefs already spoke to Sithebe during the COSAFA Cup and reached their agreement to bring him to Naturena before he came into the last six months of his contract at the beginning of the year.
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Previously, according to TimesLive, Sithebe’s representative Musa Sithebe, who is also the attacking midfielder’s uncle, explained why AmaZulu and Chiefs were not able to agree on a deal during this past January window.
“There were negotiations between the clubs, but these are now closed as they could not agree on terms,” he told TimesLIVE.
“Chiefs were offering two players in exchange for Siyethemba, but AmaZulu were only interested in a cash deal. So he remains a part of the AmaZulu squad for the rest of the season and as things stand will not be joining Chiefs at this time.”
Musa has now told Sowetan that although the 29-year-old is training with the team, it doesn’t appear likely to lead to any game time.
“At some stage, the coach wanted to include him in the [playing] squad but because of the issues, he could not.
“I really didn’t want to talk about the AmaZulu and Siyethemba issue in the media again, but it’s just that it’s a sad situation,” he continued.
“Because players are allowed to negotiate on fairgrounds in respect of their new contracts, as he negotiated with Chiefs he also opened negotiations with AmaZulu. It was all open.
“So I’m disappointed with the situation and the manner in which it culminated.”
Not that long ago, Amakhosi ran into trouble after a transfer ban was imposed by Fifa when they were found to have acted improperly when signing midfielder Andriamirado “Dax” Andrianarimanana from Fosa FC in 2018.
According to Phakaaathi, AmaZulu have been “quietly investigating and collecting evidence” on the dealings with Sithebe.
The latest report now suggests that AmaZulu have the necessary evidence, but are now just considering the next best steps.
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“When you have quality players and they don’t play, of course, you see a void,” McCarthy told the media. “The players come to train and we select them based on how they train, their work ethic and that.
“Sithebe wasn’t available and obviously it’s a discussion the club had with myself and the technical team on the situation so it’s out of my control. I can only select who I have at my disposal and unfortunately, I don’t have him at my disposal, so I can’t put a player in who I can’t select.”
