Rangers linked midfielder George Maluleka is set to leave Kaiser Chiefs at the end of the season having signed a pre-contract agreement with the Mamelodi Sundowns [Kaiserchiefs.com].
Sun Sport reported back in December that Rangers were interested in the player and talk resurfaced when he rejected the offer of a new contract at the beginning of the month [Soccer Laduma].
However, it appears he won’t be heading to Ibrox at the end of the season.
Instead, he’ll be staying in South Africa and joining the Kaiser Chiefs’ rivals, Mamelodi Sundowns.
According to a statement on the Chiefs’ website, the player himself informed his club that a pre-contract agreement was already in place, with no official approach being made by the Sundowns.
Clearly frustrated by this development, Maluleka’s current employers have suggested that the transfer process is a breach of protocol.
Verdict
This development means that Maluleka’s six-year stint with the Kaiser Chiefs will soon come to an end.
It’s perhaps a surprise that he’s willing to up sticks and join the side sitting one spot below his in the South African Premier League when three years worth of new contract were allegedly on the table.
However, it’s not a huge shock that he won’t be heading to Rangers.
The links always seemed a little far-fetched, considering that despite being 31, Maluleka has no experience of British or European football and hadn’t made an international appearance since 2012.
There was little to suggest that, despite clearly being an experienced and prominent club player in South Africa, he would be sought out to bolster the Gers midfield for the 2020/21 season.