Eight Kaizer Chiefs transfer misses

Arthur Zwane set the cat amongst the pigeons when he revealed that he felt some players are not good enough for Kaizer Chiefs. 

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Asked what he thought had had to Chiefs’ slump in the last eight years, Zwane gave an honest and heartfelt response. He said there are some players who are just not good enough but had been treated like stars for far too long. 

He was clever enough not to mention any names, but his utterances still raised eyebrows as he just confirmed what many among the club’s supporters have been complaining about. 

Here we look at the eight misses, or flops if you like, that Chiefs have committed in the transfer market in the last eight years.

1. Sula Matovu – The Ugandan was hailed as the best attacking midfielder that the club had had in a while when he joined from Iraqi side Al Najaf FC. He was given a chance by Steve Komphela who was coach at the time at Amakhosi and he failed to show indication of being a great player he was billed to be. He was released after just one season at Naturena
   
   
2. Arohasina Andrianarimanana – For all the trouble that Chiefs went through to get the Madagascan, he proved to be one of those forgettable signings. But he will unfortunately not be forgotten easily as his signing resulted in a two-window transfer ban for Amakhosi. He was shipped off after just one season.

3. Camaldine Abraw – The tall Togolese visually had all the makings of a great striker – physique and confidence. He talked a good game but on the field he could not deliver. He was also at Chiefs for one season after failing to make an impression. 

4. Edmore Chirambandare – He joined Amakhosi following a good season with Zimbabwe’s Chicken Inn. He was one of the standout performers for the Zimbabwean side in their impressive Caf Champions League run. The left footed winger was seen as a perfect replacement for Siphiwe Tshabalala when he signed. But he just could not get going at Naturena and was eventually released. 

5. Mario Booysen – The lanky defender had shown himself to be a good defender at his previous clubs but only lasted three months at Amakhosi after joining from Ajax Cape Town in 2018. 

6. Bongolwethu Jayiya – He has previously given decent performances at both Bidvest WIts and Cape Town City when he landed a dream move to Naturena in 2017. But he just fell flat and never made any notable impact at the club. He was released after two years. 

7. Ovidy Karuru – He was also a hot property in Zimbabwe when he joined Amakhosi. If you were to ask him what went wrong for him at Chiefs, he would point at a lack of game time as the reason he failed to live up to his billing. But he has not been able to hold a regular place at any other team since leaving Amakhosi except at Black Leopards.

8. Gustavo Paez – Ah, Ma-11. He got this nickname after it was revealed that he had scored just 11 goals in his entire career before joining Chiefs. He looked promising and was enterprising but it soon became clear that Amakhosi had again been sold an empty cartridge.