Orlando Pirates are in pole position to land the signature of Marumo Gallants attacker Katlego Otladisa.
Otladisa sparkled for Bahlabane Ba Ntwa in the just ended season as they went on a fairytale run in continental football.
Of course, things didn’t go as planned on the domestic scene as they were relegated.
Gallants chairman Abram Sello has resigned himself to losing most of his top players to topflight clubs.
Otladisa, with a year left on his contract with the Limpopo side, has been on the radar of four clubs.
Sekhukhune United enquired about his availability as they strengthen for continental football, but the player reportedly wasn’t keen.
AmaZulu were also interested in the right winger as well as their Durban rivals Royal AM.
Orlando Pirates have also been chasing the talented attacker for a while.
According to sources close to the deal, negotiations between the two clubs – Gallants and Pirates – are progressing quite well.
Katlego Otladisa KEEN ON JOINING ORLANDO PIRATES
“The player is keen on Pirates and they’re the club that has shown intent to meet Gallants’ valuation. It is likely that he will join them,” a source told FARPost.
Pirates finished second behind Mamelodi Sundowns in the DStv Premiership to qualify for the Caf Champions League next season.
However, they still need to find a women’s club which is a prerequisite for teams playing in CAF interclub competitions.
This comes after CAF informed all the Member Associations that all the club’s that will play in the 2023/24 CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup need to have a women’s football team or else can’t get the license to take part in this competition.
Should Pirates successfully register, they will need a bit of depth in their squad.
Otladisa is a player used to the rigours of playing the game on the African terrain and would add so much value to the Buccaneers.
In the just-ended season, Otladisa made 43 appearances in all competitions, including the CAF Confederation Cup.
The coaches at Gallants often deployed him in the ring wing position where he excelled.
His teammates from Gallants are already on the move.
Celimpilo Ngema was first to confirm a switch after signing a pre-contract with AmaZulu FC.
Lucky Mohomi is on his way to Richards Bay while Lebogang Mabotja is in between negotiations with Sekhukhune United and Royal AM.
Ranga Chivaviro is also on demand with Kaizer Chiefs and Young Africans both showing interest in him.
Richards Bay have publicly declared that the striker signed a pre-contract while Gallants also say they exercised the one year option on his contract which binds him to the club for another year.
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