Tau's absence from Brighton & Hove Albion squad fuels Al Ahly rumours

Brighton and Hove Albion manager Graham Potter says Percy Tau missed their final pre-season friendly game against Getafe due to “personal reasons” as rumours that the Bafana Bafana star is about to join Al Ahly gain momentum.

A week after an impressive friendly match outing against Luton Town which he capped with a sensational goal, Tau was expected to feature against Gefate and further plead his case that he deserves more game time.

But he was absent from Potter’s 23-man squad on Saturday on the backdrop of days of him being heavily linked with a move to Al Ahly.

“He was out for personal reasons. We will see how the weekend goes and go from there on Tuesday,” said Potter as per Brighton and Hove Independent.

Tau is said to have become a prime target of Al Ahly coach Pitso Mosimane, who is keen to have him in Cairo after the two shared a successful period at Mamelodi Sundowns.

Reports suggest that Tau has already entered talks with the African champions.

The 27-year-old struggled for game time at Brighton, where he arrived in January from loan stints in Belgium, and has a year left on his Seagulls contract.

He managed just three Premier League appearances and featured in the FA Cup as many times. 

Potter says he is not yet done on the transfer market and although he does not state areas he needs to beef up, the arrival of an attacker could mean a potential replacement for Tau.

“It's the boring answer but the truth. We have to keep looking until the window closes to see if there's anyone out there that can help the squad and the team,” Potter added.

“It's never straightforward with the window. I'm happy with what we have but always looking for ways we can improve.”

Reports linking Tau to Al Ahly come a few days after former Bafana and Leeds United captain Lucas Radebe urged him to fight for playing time at Brighton.

Radebe said he took one-and-half-seasons to find his feet at Leeds before going on to captain the team 

“I don’t think Percy must leave. I see no point in returning to Belgium because he’s been there before,” Radebe told Sowetan Live.

“He’s talented enough to play at Brighton. He must fight harder...show them he can do it. That goal [against Luton] will build his confidence.

"He must never look back. This season must be the season he shows the world that he’s a great player.”