Zimpapers Logo

Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
WARRIORS defender Divine Lunga is close to completing a dream move to South African DStv Premier Soccer League champions Mamelodi Sundowns from Durban-based side Golden Arrows.

Sundowns first showed interest in the left-back back in January when they attempted to lure the Zimbabwean during the mid-season transfer window.

It was reported then that Sundowns had agreed terms with Arrows and Lunga would join Sundowns at the end of the 2020/21 DStv Premiership season.

Sources said the 26-year-old left-back’s move to Chloorkop, Sundowns’ headquarters, is imminent, with the player cutting short his holiday in his hometown of Bulawayo to return to South Africa to complete the move.

A junior product of Ajax Hotspurs from Mpopoma suburb, Lunga, who won the 2015 Castle Lager PSL title with Chicken Inn, is presently in Johannesburg where he moved to on the advice of his handlers.

“The two clubs (Sundowns and Arrows) are presently seized with negotiations and the player’s representatives are being kept in the loop.

It’s only a matter of time before Lunga completes his move because he is already in Johannesburg waiting for a call to head to Chloorkop to sign the deal. That is why he didn’t stay long on his break in Bulawayo. He had to rush back to be on standby for completion of the deal,” said the source.

Player intermediary Gibson Mahachi, who represents Lunga, confirmed Sundowns’ interest.

“I can confirm interest and subsequent ongoing discussions. Will update on the outcome,” Mahachi said in a brief response to inquiries from Chronicle Sport.

Lunga joined Arrows in 2018 and has made 73 league appearances for the KwaZulu-Natal club, which finished fourth in the PSL; their best topflight finish in their history.

In his first season at Arrows, Lunga was only substituted once in 24 league starts, as Arrows finished 10th on the league table.

He went on to make 23 league starts when Arrows finished the league campaign in 12th place in the 2019/20 season, and again being substituted once and coming from the bench on two occasions.

In the just ended season, Lunga made 26 starts and came off the bench once when Arrows beat SuperSport United 3-2 on October 28 last year.

Meanwhile, the future of Warriors’ defensive midfielder Butholezwe Ncube and winger Talent Chawapiwa at South African PSL side AmaZulu has been thrown into uncertainty following media reports that the duo are likely to be shipped out of the Durban-based side.

AmaZulu, who made history by finishing second in the 2020/21 DStv PSL to clinch a Caf Champions League ticket for the very first time, have reportedly started beefing up their squad for the continental safari and the Zimbabwean players, who did not feature prominently in the history-making campaign, are set to be released.

According to South African football publication Soccer Laduma, Ncube and Chawapiwa are among Usuthu players likely to be transfer listed alongside former Bafana Bafana 2010 World Cup poster boy Siphiwe Tshabalala and Ghanaian midfielder Samuel Darpoh, who didn’t play a single game in the 2020/21 season.

Tshabalala made just two appearances in their 0-0 draw against Maritzburg United on June 5 and came on as a second-half substitute in Usuthu’s 0-2 loss to Golden Arrows on December 16, 2020.

The 29-year-old Ncube has been in the books of Usuthu since 2016, making 102 league appearances, of which he made 88 starts and came from the bench 14 times during his stay in Durban.

In the just ended season, the former Tsholotsho FC midfielder made 16 league appearances, starting eight and coming from the bench eight times.

Unlike his countryman Chawapiwa, who failed to finish a match in all his six starts last season, Ncube, who has a year left on his contract, was only substituted three times in his eight starts.

Chawapiwa made 13 appearances from the bench.

Chawapiwa joined Amazulu from Baroka FC in 2019 on a three-year contract after snubbing Kaizer Chiefs, but failed to make any meaningful impact.

Zimbabwean winger Evans Rusike is also reportedly close to retracing his footsteps to Maritzburg United after being let go by SuperSport.

The 31-year-old joined the Pretoria side in January 2018 with a fearsome reputation, but struggled for as he failed to find the net in 21 appearances. — @ZililoR