Despite reports that Orlando Pirates could release a midfielder to make space for new signings, the player's representative has firmly countered these suggestions.
As previously reported by Soccer Laduma, the future of midfielder Bandile Shandu was in limbo, but his agent Mike Makaab says the player will remain at Bucs.
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Renowned football agent Makaab told Soccer Laduma that the former Maritzburg United midfielder is staying at Pirates as he enters the last year of his contract.
"He is staying at Pirates. He is an Orlando Pirates player so there is nothing for us to discuss at the moment concerning his future. He is staying at Orlando Pirates," Makaab told the Siya crew.
A Pirates insider discusses the situation with less certainty, including various factors that could change things going forward.
"Yes, apparently his contract is believed to be only running out in June 2026. That means he still has a year at Pirates but he is one of the players that the club could release so that they can create space for new arrivals. It's believed the club is expected to sign close to 10 new players and so then they have to release more than what they have already done to accommodate the new arrivals," the insider believes.
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Shandu, who is now 30 years old, joined the Buccaneers from Maritzburg United in the 2021/22 season, and that was his best season, playing a phenomenal amount of league games and scoring goals too. This past season he featured in a fair amount of Betway Premiership fixtures, and scored goals which is a good contribution considering he was recovering from injury.
Soccer Laduma contacted Pirates for official comment on the player's future but there was no response at the time of publishing.
The contrasting messages from Makaab and club sources create an interesting dynamic around Shandu's future. With new coach Abdeslam Ouaddou seemingly planning a significant squad overhaul and potentially bringing in more players, the coming month should prove decisive for several current Pirates players.
