Visa issues have forced the cancellation of Fiacre Ntwari’s trip to Turkey, where the new Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper was expected to join his teammates.
The Rwandan international was scheduled to travel to Istanbul after penning a five-year deal [4+1] with Chiefs from TS Galaxy.
Amakhosi has been in Istanbul for the past two weeks, but visa issues prevented him from making the trip. The standard processing time for Turkey visa applications submitted by Rwandan nationals is 15 working days.
An expedited processing service may be available, reducing the processing time to five working days.
It’s estimated that his visa won’t be ready until the end of the week, with a possible collection on Friday. While he could travel over the weekend, the team’s imminent return on Wednesday makes the trip to Turkey impractical.
WHAT FIACRE NTWARI WILL DO WHILE WAITING TO JOIN HIS NEW KAIZER CHIEFS TEAMMATES
Despite the setback, the 24-year-old completed his medical examinations at the Kaizer Chiefs village in Naturena earlier this week.
The former TS Galaxy goalie is expected to train with the club’s development side to maintain his fitness.
He will join the first team when they return from Turkey next week. The Amavubi star will travel to Bloemfontein for Chiefs’ Toyota Cup clash against Young Africans of Tanzania on July 28th.
This match could mark Ntwari’s debut for the Soweto giants, giving fans their first glimpse of the goalkeeper who impressed last season with 13 clean sheets in 32 appearances for TS Galaxy.
Ntwari’s journey to the DStv Premiership has been remarkable. He played for various clubs in Rwanda, including Intare FC, APR FC, Marines FC, and AS Kigali, before his big break with TS Galaxy in 2023.
As the second signing for Chiefs this season, following the arrival of left-back Bongani Sam from Orlando Pirates, Ntwari will compete for the goalkeeper position with Bruce Bvuma, Brandon Peterson, and Bontle Molefe.
His new coach, Nasreddine Nabi, eagerly awaits Ntwari’s integration into the team and his potential contributions on the field.
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