Player agent Mike Makaab has responded to questions about Andile Jali’s whereabouts after the midfielder left Chippa United at the end of last season.
Now 35, the former Bafana Bafana star has disappeared from public space and is currently unattached.
After making 12 appearances for the Chilli Boys last campaign, Jali stopped featuring for them towards the end of the term.
Chippa opted against extending his stay at the club, leaving him without a team amid questions about his future. The former Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates midfielder’s agent, Makaab, has come out to break the silence about what his client is up to.
WHERE IS ANDILE JALI?
“He is pursuing his business interests now,” Makaab said.
Since Jali has not officially announced his retirement, and Makaab did not explicitly state that the player has hung up his boots, there is a possibility the midfielder could resume his playing career. However, due to his age, it appears that his chances of a comeback to the game as a player are slim.
Makaab’s remarks come as Jali has, on some occasions, taken to social media, posting videos that suggest he has ventured into farming. He has also been showing his hobby as a biker.
JALI’S KNACK OF UNCEREMONIOUS DEPARTURES
Jali’s quiet exit from the Chilli Boys has followed what looks like a familiar script of his movements between clubs.
After his celebrated transfer from Pirates to KV Oostende in January 2014, he then left the Belgian side under a cloud of controversy after four-and-a-half seasons. Oostende released him two months before his contract with the club was to expire, as the player’s relationship with the club had broken.
His departure from his next club, Mamelodi Sundowns, was almost in a similar fashion as he stopped training with the Brazilians towards the end of the 2022/23 season amid reports of indiscipline.
A move to Moroka Swallows also came to an end unceremoniously after spending just half a season at the Dube Birds, followed by his legal action against the club.
He admitted that after leaving Maswaiswai, he contemplated retiring before Chippa came calling.
The former AmaTuks star has now posted a cryptic message on social media, hinting at retirement and captioning a video of a game in Sundowns colours, “Let me just leave it here for now.”
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