Mike Makaab, the agent of Andile Jali, has given an update on the Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder after it was reported he had stopped training with the club.
Jali, 32, is experiencing a tough time at Chloorkop after being named DStv Premiership Midfielder of the Season in 2021/22 and also winning the MTN8 Last Man Standing as well as the Nedbank Cup Player of the Season, he has only made 12 appearances this campaign.
His last game was a Nedbank Cup clash with Richards Bay on 7 February but he hasn’t been in the squad in the last three games, amid the ongoing speculation around his future, with his current deal expiring by the end of June.
Last week, reports in local media claimed that Jali arrived under the influence of alcohol to training, as the lack go game-time is understood to have an impact on him. He also fuelled the fire by posting a picture of arriving in his home town Matatiele in the Eastern Cape.
Makaab has now confirmed that Jali was indeed home, but has since returned to training with the Sundowns squad, saying people need to understand the human aspect of the situation.
“Yes, he is [training]. He has also been at home and that’s not a secret,” he said on Gagasi FM.
“But again, one needs to look at the human element of this whole thing and understand that we have a player that is not settled. And we must accept that.
“It’s nobody’s fault. It’s not his fault, it’s not the football club’s fault. These things happen in football.
“We’ve done our best to try and find a solution, I think Mamelodi Sundowns have done their best to try and find a solution. At times these things take time to unfold.
“I prefer for them to unfold naturally than for it to be forced. Anything that is done under pressure, anything that is done in a manner that isn’t – let me use correct word – natural, that isn’t done naturally, there’s pressure from one side or the other to conclude something for the sake of concluding something, I don’t believe those arrangements ever work out.
“I prefer to let things unfold as naturally as they can.”
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