Following his fine form for Ajax Cape Town this season, Anssi Jaakkola’s stock has risen considerably.
The Siya crew is reliably informed that the player was linked with a move back to Europe, but the club is not interested in letting the shot-stopper go.
The Finnish goalkeeper has started 18 games in all competitions and the crew is informed that he is set to go back to Europe.
The 27-year-old Jaakkola is contracted to the Urban Warriors until June 2015. The crew managed to catch up with club’s coach, Roger de Sa, who denied that the lanky keeper could be leaving.
“Not that I know of. According to his contract, he’s still in our plans. We intend to keep him because he’s done well for the club. The links that he’s going back to Europe are not true and he’s enjoying himself here,” said De Sa.
The Siya crew also understands that the Ikamva based-club would prefer to do straight deals and not exchanges of players when it comes to refreshing the squad at the end of the season. The crew is reliably informed that they need central defenders, as well as left and right wingers, to have balance in their squad.
The crew put up a call to the club’s executive director, Ari Efstathiou, who revealed to the crew that, although they have a list of players they want to sign for the next season, Jaakkola is not on the outgoing list.
“No, there’s no such thing as Anssi leaving the club any time soon. He’s our player and staying with the club. He’s a regular player and a crucial member of the squad. However, we have plans to beef up the squad, but we’ll see our options at the end of the season,” said Efstathiou.
The crew will keep a close eye on the developments at Ikamva and keep you in the know.