How Kaizer Chiefs missed out on Rowan Human to AmaZulu

Kaizer Chiefs were dealt a massive blow on Tuesday, with AmaZulu officially announcing Amakhosi target Rowan Human as their player.

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Human will now stay in Durban in the green and white colours of AmaZulu, but just how close he was to joining Chiefs before the situation changed.

Human ended up being one of the standout players for Bafana Bafana in the recently concluded COSAFA Cup, scoring their opening goal of the tournament, in a 1-1 draw against Namibia. Human was also the player who scored the winning penalty in the fixture, to earn the South Africans a bronze medal on home soil, in their 3rd/4th playoff match against Malawi. It is now expected that the race for his signature between Chiefs, Pirates and Sundowns is now set to heat up.

Chiefs were the first team to be credited with an interest in the player, with links surfacing two months ago.  At the time, there was hope from their side that they could secure his signature on a free, before they learnt that the KZN club had exercised their option to extend his deal for another season. Pirates then joined the chase for Human, and this publication also reported that, they were in talks with Maritzburg to do a double deal for both the 22-year-old and his partner in crime Karim Kimvuidi. 

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In the end, however, Chiefs would miss out as DStv Premiership rivals AmaZulu ended up sweeping in to sign Human. According to Soccer-Laduma, Amakhosi were actually in the drivers seat to seal the deal.

HOW AMAZULU HIJACKED CHIEFS’ MOVE FOR HUMAN

“It was Amakhosi who were in the lead for the player’s services, with talks between the club’s hierarchy and Human’s camp understood to be at an advanced stage, according to the Siya Crew. In a sudden turn of events, talks between the Soweto giants and Human’s camp stalled, which saw saw the KwaZulu-Natal side step in with the club’s ambitious owner Sandile Zungu putting his money where his mouth is, making an offer to Maritzburg United, with whom Human is contracted until 2024” wrote the publication.

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So effectively, it seems as if Chiefs were their own worst enemies when it comes to Human, with AmaZulu taking advantage.