Cape Town City head coach, Eric Tinkler, has revealed that the club had been anticipating the departure of star striker Khanyisa Mayo.
Mayo, a two-time top scorer for City, recently completed a high-profile move to Algerian club CR Belouizdad.
Speaking ahead of the MTN8 quarter-final against Sekhukhune United, Tinkler emphasized the club’s stance on player progression:
And I’ve said this before, as a club we will never stand in the way of a player progressing and bettering his life, so we’ve always had to be aware of that situation.”
To fill the void left by Mayo, Tinkler had identified Amadou Soukouna as a potential replacement. Unfortunately, visa issues have delayed the former Maritzburg United playmaker’s arrival.
Despite this setback, the coach expressed confidence in his other options, including the promising Jody Ah-Shene and the returning Prince Tjiueza.
“And a lot of people assume we’ve done our scouting last minute dot com, but we started our scouting a long time ago, in terms of who we want to bring in, who fits the profile, who has the personality, who has the characteristics, and so we have a replacement for him, who unfortunately, right now, can’t get in the country because he’s banned,” he added
“But we’re hoping to resolve that situation as soon as possible. The youngster Jody [Ah-Shene] has really stepped up, has really done well so far during the pre-season, so we’re very happy with the progress that he has made.
“We’ve sent Luke Daniels on loan because we felt that he needed more game time.
“And then obviously, we have Prince [Tjiueza] who has come back from injury who can play as a nine or a false nine. So we have the options available to ourselves there.”
City will face Sekhukhune United in the MTN8 quarter-finals on August 10 with a spot in the semis alongside Pirates and Stellenbosch up for grabs.