By Velile Mnyandu
Mamelodi Sundowns are risking having an unhappy player in their camp as Egyptian giants Al Ahly continue with their pursuit of dazzling attacker Gaston Sirino.
Ahly, who are now coached by former Sundowns head coach Pitso Mosimane following his groundbreaking move to North Africa in September just after winning a treble with the Brazilians last season, are believed to have tabled two offers already to the PSL champions, but they have both been turned down.
iDiski Times understands that this has gone as far as unsettling Sirino and he has made this known in the camp, and it could affect his performances going forward. Ahly’s initial offer was said to be around $1,5-million, and they had since improved that after it was refused by Sundowns.
Sirino’s statistics since joining Sundowns from Bolivar in Bolivia in 2018 are very impressive. In only two years, he’s played in 100 matches, scored 24 goals and provided 29 assists. It’s also with the secondary assists where he is deadly, engineering most of the attacks and plays a key role in set plays as well.
To prepare for the Uruguayan international’s arrival, the record eight times African champions have also started the process of freeing up an extra foreign spot, with Senegalese striker Aliou Badji reported to be heading for an exit from the Red Devils. The futures of Angolan and Nigerian attackers Geraldo and Junior Ajayi are also not guaranteed.
Sundowns has always had a policy of not selling their best players to clubs in Africa, as they don’t want to arm their direct opponents in the CAF Champions League and this could be the reason behind stalling Sirino’s move.
But this would be at what cost, with Sirino believed to have made up his mind already as the potential move to reunite with Mosimane could possibly see him earning over R1 million a month.
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