Kaizer Chiefs football manager Bobby Motaung says it’s normal for striker Samir Nurkovic to be confused about his future with clubs from the Gulf region circling, but insists Amakhosi don’t want to sell their best players.
The Serbian was Amakhosi’s top goalscorer last season with 13 in the league and one goal in the cup, as well as six assists in all competitions, but has missed the first part of the season after undergoing a groin operation in September with his presence sorely being missed.
Chiefs have struggled in his absence with only three goals having been scored in 11 matches – two by Leonardo Castro and one from Khama Billiat.
The Amakhosi faithful, however, were given hope when the club posted earlier in the week that the striker had returned to training. However, coach Gavin Hunt painted a different picture in his pre-match interview on Wednesday.
‘Nurkovic has been fit for about two weeks now but obviously there are other problems,’ he told SuperSport TV. ‘Those problems must be sorted out first. I mean he could play, but let’s leave it for another day.’
This led to renewed speculation that Nurkovic has been targeted by Pitso Mosimane’s newly crowned African champions, Al Ahly.
In an subsequent interview with SAfm, Motaung did not deny that there has been an approach for the Serbian or that any club have shown interest.
‘There must be a willing seller-buyer situation,’ Motaung told the radio station, as quoted by the Citizen. ‘They must both agree on the price, but I won’t lie, these things destabilise the player.
‘He has a three-year contract. He’s in a good environment. But it’s normal that he’ll be confused by everything.
‘We, as Kaizer Chiefs, would never close the door when a player has to leave, but also as a club, when we release, we must make sure that we replace. We can’t hire a new coach and sell the best players. There must be a balance,’ Motaung continued.
‘We just hired a coach. Can the coach work with the squad that is there, including the best striker? Then if next year something comes up and the coach feels he has a replacement, then there is that possibility.’
