Bobby Motaung turned down chance to sign Nasreddine Nabi-admired Fiston Mayele - 'The player was keen to join Kaizer Chiefs'

Fiston Mayele could have been donning the gold and black of Kaizer Chiefs, but the club passed on the opportunity to sign him when it mattered. Despite being admired by current coach Nasreddine Nabi, it was Bobby Motaung who turned down the deal at the time. Mayele dazzled under current Chiefs head coach Nasreddine Nabi.

Mayele is now flourishing at Egyptian giants Pyramids, pushing hard to secure a Caf Champions League last two spot ahead of Orlando Pirates. Christian Bukasa revealed that Chiefs didn’t see his value back then, but now Mayele is in his prime and Europe is the next likely step. A return to South Africa is off the cards, especially after proving his worth on a bigger stage.

"The player was keen to join Chiefs, but the club decided otherwise because they felt he wasn’t worth what he was asking," Bukasa said as reported by Kickoff.

"We spoke to Bobby (Motaung), but they turned down the opportunity, but what I can tell you is that Chiefs would have paid a transfer fee of not more than R10 million.

"All of this happened before Nabi came to Chiefs. I believe Mayele would have made a world of a difference at Chiefs because he is a goal-scoring striker as he has proven through the years," he added.

"In South Africa, they have their own way of seeing players and unfortunately, since we last spoke to Chiefs, there has been no further discussions around Mayele.

"He is now with Pyramids, where he is on almost double the money that he had asked from Chiefs," he continued.

"The Chiefs door is closed now, and the next logical move will be Saudi Arabia."

Mayele recently had a goal controversially ruled out by VAR against Orlando Pirates, sparking outrage from his coach, Krunoslav Jurcic. The Croatian believes the striker was robbed and that the game should have been won by Pyramids.

Mayele’s hunger to silence his doubters continues to grow, and the spotlight intensifies each time he steps on the pitch. If he helps deny Pirates a CAF spot, it will be a double blow for Amakhosi, for missing out on him and seeing their rivals fall.

Kaizer Chiefs will face Marumo Gallants next in a crucial league encounter. That match will serve as preparation for the back-to-back Soweto Derbies, including the Nedbank Cup final. Nabi’s men must gain momentum before facing Pirates twice in two weeks.