In a surprising double twist at Mamelodi Sundowns, Ethiopian forward Abubeker Nasir, once reported to have been released, had then made an unexpected return to the club during pre-season, but all may not be as it seems. The Siya crew investigates.
The team was preparing for their European tour in Austria when Nasir was spotted with the Brazilians, but now despite this development, it appears that Nassir's future with Sundowns remains uncertain.
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Sources close to the club have indicated that Nassir's departure is still likely as Masandawana continue to rebuild its squad for the 2024/25 season.
"It's not like they are going to register him right away. There are a lot of things that the Sporting Director (Flemming Berg) and the new technical team are looking at before the final decision can be made on him. You know since January last year he was not registered because of injury and it was clear he would not and they are still looking at that," said the Siya source.
"You know the other thing is that there are some players now who can play in his position who can do the same job much better and that's why there are discussions going on among all the involved parties. But it's not that he is automatically staying. No, it's not like that at the moment," the source added.
A second insider highlighted financial considerations as a significant factor in the ongoing discussions about Nassir's future with the club.
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"There are few other issues they are still trying to settle between all the involved parties. The main and most important is the issue of the compensation and payout if the player leaves before his contract expires. So they are talking about that before they can finalise his departure. But as things stand, he is expected to leave the club before the start of the season," the second Siya source stated.
Nasir's contract with Sundowns is set to expire in June 2026. If the team decides to release him before this date, they would be expected to compensate him for the remainder of his contract.
Soccer Laduma reached out to Sundowns, and Nasir's agent Steve Kapeluschnik, for comments on the situation, but there was no response at the time this report was published.
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