After his high-profile signing back in 2018, Khama Billiat's five-year stay at Kaizer Chiefs' Naturena Village appears to be nearing its end. The player will see his contract with the side come to an end next month and indications are that his time with the Soweto giants is up. However, with talks having opened regarding his future, there is a possibility that the Zimbabwean could stay on at Amakhosi… on one condition. Siya sources have informed this publication of the club's condition for the 33-year-old star's possible retention at South Africa's most-supported outfit.
What The Siya Crew Has Been Told…
The latest news reaching Soccer Laduma is that Kaizer Chiefs and Khama Billiat have opened talks regarding his future at the club despite a sportsman's hernia injury bringing an abrupt ending to his season. With less than two months to run on his contract, which was extended for a further two years back in 2021, Amakhosi, according to Siya sources, have informed the player's camp that there is a possibility for him to remain at the side beyond the 2022/23 season. However, in order for that to happen, Billiat will have to take a pay cut – and a big one at that! According to insiders at the Naturena-based side, the skillful star will have to take a salary cut of at least 50% if he is to remain at Chiefs beyond the current campaign. A source further explained that the Zimbabwean is understood to be amongst the three highest-paid players at the Glamour Boys, with Keagan Dolly and Itumeleng Khune the club's highest-earning players. According to information received by this publication, the attacker is on a salary of over R500 000 per month. The source further revealed that even with a drastic pay cut, the fan favourite will still be amongst the highest-paid players at the club, owing to his hefty package at the Naturena-based outfit. Head coach Arthur Zwane is understood to be keen on keeping Billiat in the roster, despite his battles with injury this season. However, whether or not the player remains at the club is out of the 49-year-old mentor's hands at this stage. According to the information made available to the Siya crew, Billiat's future at the Soweto giants could well be determined by how talks advance between the club's hierarchy and his camp.
What Are The Facts?
Statistically, Billiat's five-year stint at Chiefs has been a failure. He was snapped up as a marquee signing from Mamelodi Sundowns as a free agent back in 2018 and was expected to continue with the fine form that he displayed for the Brazilians between 2013 and 2018, which made him a household name in South African football. Given that the side signed him as a free agent, a then 28-year-old Billiat was able to negotiate higher teams as there was no transfer fee paid from Amakhosi. The club, despite not being known to fork out hefty transfer fees, do have a history of remunerating their players well – with the Zimbabwean being amongst those upon his arrival. However, with 24 goals and 29 assists in 125 games over five seasons, Chiefs are yet to yield a return on investment for the highly-rated star. Five coaches in Giovanni Solinas, Ernst Middendorp, Gavin Hunt, Stuart Baxter and more recently Zwane have come and (four) gone, yet none has managed to get the best out of the nimble-footed attacker. The club has looked outside for solutions to help get the best out of Billiat by signing Leonardo Castro and Dolly, with whom he formed the deadly 'CBD' trident in 2016 at Sundowns – but not even that did the trick. In the current season, Billiat has featured just 11 times in all competitions, with three assists to his name and no goals to show for it. His last appearance in the famous Gold and Black jersey came in October 2022, a 1-0 win over archrivals Orlando Pirates. Despite having resumed light training with the group, his season was brought to an abrupt end when he suffered a sportsman's hernia injury, which required surgery, at the end of 2022. His stats at Chiefs may not make for interesting reading, yet somehow Billiat could still prove pivotal to the club's cause going forward – if he does stay.
The Story Behind The Scenes
Billiat's Time At Sundowns v His Time At Chiefs
Billiat spent five years at the Brazilians – the same amount of time that he has spent at Amakhosi. However, there is a stark contrast between how he fared at Chloorkop compared to his time at Naturena. In five years at the Tshwane giants, he managed 140 appearances in all competitions, while he has managed just 125 for Chiefs in a similar timespan. The discrepancy is owing to Billiat's constant niggling injuries with his current club. In terms of his output, he managed to get 47 goals for the Downs, almost double the amount that he has gotten for Chiefs (24). Similarly, he had been more effective for Sundowns in terms of setting up his teammates as he managed 43 assists, while he could only lay on 29 assists for his teammates in five seasons at the Soweto giants. Naturally, the trophy output at the six-time consecutive league winners proved to be much higher than it has been at the Glamour Boys. In five seasons with Sundowns, he managed seven trophies, including the CAF Champions League in 2016. However, at Chiefs, he is yet to lift silverware.
Billiat's Injury History
During his time at Chloorkop, Billiat missed a total of 27 games in five seasons due to injury. The longest of which came in 2013/14, 2016/17 and 2017/18. In those periods, he missed seven games at a time, owing to foot and knee injuries respectively. With Chiefs, he has experienced seven lengthy spells on the sidelines with injury, with his current injury being the longest spell. He has missed 51 games in total for Chiefs, with 16 of those coming this season. With no return in sight, that period is expected to be extended, with Billiat unlikely to return to action before the conclusion of the season.
Is Billiat's Time At Chiefs All Doom and Gloom?
Billiat was signed by Chiefs at the age of 28 – an age where most footballers peak. However, for the 33-year-old, it appears that the club never got the same player who had done enough to be crowned the country's best player in the 2015/16 season. However, it hasn't been all doom and gloom. In the 2019/20 campaign, under then coach Middendorp, the Soweto giants came within minutes of lifting the DStv Premiership title, eventually losing it to Mamelodi Sundowns. Billiat played a massive role in the Naturena-based side's title charge that season – he scored three goals and laid on two assists. He has also been to two cup finals with Amakhosi, the 2018/19 Nedbank Cup final as well as the 2020/21 CAF Champions League, although both ended in defeat. The player has had his moments with Chiefs which has seen former coach Solinas refer to him as 'Messi' after the Argentine great, but unlike Messi, Billiat has not delivered for the club on a consistent basis. However, the fact that the hierarchy are open to the idea of holding onto the star, albeit on a significantly lower salary, could be an indication that Amakhosi believe there is more to come from Billiat at Naturena.
What Zwane Is Saying…
While the final decision on whether Billiat stays at Chiefs or not ultimately depends on talks between the player's camp and the club's hierarchy, Zwane has made his feelings known regarding the Zimbabwean. Prior to his major injury, the coach revealed that Billiat, if fit, will play for Kaizer Chiefs given his big-game pedigree. Although in February this year, he revealed to journalists that he doesn't know who will be staying at the club and who will be leaving. "Look, everything boils down to one thing, profiling players and the plan for next season. I'm not gonna say who is gonna be part of the season and who is not – we don't know. As things are right now, only time will tell," he told journalists when asked about Billiat's future at the club.
Secret Agent
The Siya crew spoke to a top agent in SA to get their expert understanding on what's going on. For obvious reasons, the agent will remain anonymous.
"As an agent looking after Billiat, I would sit the player down and look at what the best option is at this stage. He is 32 at the moment and has probably signed the last big deal of his career. However, with the possibility of staying at Chiefs, he is still likely to earn a good package. Let's be honest, where else will he get the money that he is currently receiving at Chiefs? He has been at the club for a long time and, in that time, should have accumulated enough to live comfortably after he hangs up his boots. One thing he needs to do before parting ways with Chiefs is at least help them win a trophy. The club hasn't won a trophy for eight years and he has been there for five of them. I'm not saying it is his fault. However, as someone who has won things at his previous club, surely the feeling of lifting silverware is something he yearns for. Moreover, by doing that, he will help sway the fans' opinions of him. It is no secret that Chiefs fans have grown tired of the player and his injury-prone nature, but a trophy, regardless of which one it is, could go a long way in repairing that relationship."
Watch This Space
Billiat's next move, whether he remains at Chiefs or leaves the Village, will be an interesting one. The Zimbabwean is understood to be one of the highest earners at the club, but hasn't lived up to his billing at the club. A huge pay cut could be on the horizon for the 2015/16 PSL Player of the Season, something that will help the club balance the books as a number of new recruits are understood to be making their way to Naturena at the end of the season. A salary adjustment has been called for in the industry, with former Chiefs number one Brian Baloyi recently suggesting to Soccer Laduma that Billiat should be handed a performance-based contract. In addition, the player's package puts him in a predicament. Should he choose to leave the club, his package is likely to put off a number of teams in the DStv Premiership, meaning that he would likely have to take a significant salary cut regardless of where he goes locally. Which begs the question that would he be better off staying with Chiefs, a place he has called home for the last five years, on a lower package and try to repay the significant investment the club made by roping him in? There was interest in his services from the UAE, a region where he would be able to earn a similar package, prior to his move to the Soweto giants. However, Billiat's performances for the side are unlikely to result in teams barging down Amakhosi's door for his services. It now remains to be seen how talks progress between Billiat's camp and Chiefs' top brass in the coming weeks with a stay for the player a possibility at this stage.
