Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi has some big decisions to make with some of his key players currently at risk of missing the Soweto Derby on May 3.
Amakhosi will face rivals Orlando Pirates in the Betway Premiership in under two weeks, but there are a few players who are just one booking away from missing the crucial encounter.
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Chiefs face Marumo Gallants at FNB Stadium this Saturday and there are four players in the team who are currently sitting on three yellow cards.
All of Wandile Duba, Inacio Miguel, Mduduzi Shabalala and Tashreeq Morris are one booking away from being suspended.
Duba has been one of the key players for Amakhosi upfront. With six goals in all competitions this season, Amakhosi would certainly want to have Duba available for both the derby in the Betway Premiership and the following one in the Nedbank Cup final a week later.
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Shabalala is another player who has proven to be a key member of Nabi’s squad, with four goals and two assists this season. He’s been used mostly as a substitute in recent matches, but the player remains important and not having him as an option for the Soweto Derby could be tricky for Nabi.
Morris, who is still waiting for his first Amakhosi goal, is another one who could miss out if he plays against Gallants and gets booked. Miguel has recently been out injured and it remains to be seen if he will be ready to play this weekend, or if they would save him for the derby.
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Kaizer Chiefs are keen to retain at least one of their midfielders beyond the current season, and the Siya crew has the latest on his contract situation.
With his loan deal set to end on June 30, Siya sources have now indicated that Amakhosi are believed to be tabling a two-year contract to keep Njabulo Blom at Naturena.
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This means the South African would have to be bought permanently since he is currently on loan.
Insiders close to the matter added that Chiefs have already presented the midfielder with a deal that could run until June 2027, with an additional one-year option included.
“As for wanting him to stay after his loan is over, that is as good as done. Now the issue will be the new contract and that’s what is believed that the club has offered him, a two-year deal already. We know that the team doesn’t want to lose him and hence the two-year proposal which could run until June 2027. But I believe it has a one-year option as well. So they are working on that now,” the insider told Soccer Laduma.
A second source stated that the player, too, is leaning towards staying at the club, citing a lack of game time at his parent club St. Louis SC in the MLS, and a renewed sense of happiness since returning to Naturena.
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“When Bradley Carnell was still the coach, Njabulo enjoyed his football there but after Carnell’s departure things changed and that’s why they loaned him out. And now he is happy at Chiefs and at home, that’s why he apparently also wants to stay at Chiefs. So the two-year offer could be the right choice for both club and player at this point. They have to buy him back from St Louis as his contract there runs until December 2025,” the second insider revealed.
The Soweto-born midfielder, who first broke into Chiefs’ senior team in 2019, made a move to the MLS in 2022, where he played many matches. Since being loaned back to Chiefs this season, the 25-year-old has made a high amount of appearances, prompting Chiefs’ ambition to secure him on a permanent basis.
Soccer Laduma contacted Chiefs for comment on this story, but no response was available at the time of publishing.
ROME (OSV News) — Before he was Pope Francis, the first pope from the Americas, he was Jorge Mario Bergoglio — a kid from Buenos Aires cheering for San Lorenzo, going to live games with his dad on Sundays.
In a country where soccer is practically a second religion, little Jorge found his first taste of joy, teamwork and heartbreak not in the sacristy — but on the pitch.
His devotion to San Lorenzo de Almagro isn’t just a nostalgic footnote — it’s a window into the soul of a pope who knew what it meant to love fiercely, hope deeply and stay loyal — win or lose.
Oscar Lucchini, who is in charge of the chapel of San Lorenzo de Almagro, Pope Francis’ hometown soccer team, holds a shirt of the team in Buenos Aires with an image of the pontiff April 21, 2025, following the death of the 88-year-old pope. (OSV News photo//Matias Baglietto, Reuters)
Upon Pope Francis’ passing, San Lorenzo issued a poignant statement reflecting on his lifelong bond with the club: “His passion for San Lorenzo always moved us deeply, and unites us in constant prayer for his soul.”
Affectionately known as “El Ciclón,” this team holds a special place in Argentine soccer history, as one of the “big five” teams. Founded in 1908 by Father Lorenzo Massa, the club’s origins are deeply intertwined with the Catholic Church. The fans of the club are known as “the crows,” for the black cassock Father Massa wore.
Young Bergoglio’s passion for San Lorenzo was inherited from his father, Mario José, who played basketball for the club. Even as archbishop of Buenos Aires, the future pope maintained close ties with the club, officiating Mass at the Ciudad Deportiva chapel, confirming young players like Ángel Correa, and even spending $100 to buy a piece of wood from what used to be the bleachers of the original stadium.
In 2024, despite having shunned all but a handful of awards and public recognitions, according to the club’s statement, he accepted the honor of having San Lorenzo’s future stadium named Papa Francisco.
“Emotional, the Holy Father accepted without doubting it,” San Lorenzo said on April 21, hours after the death of the Argentine pontiff.
Pope Francis wrote in his autobiography “Hope” that he had been nicknamed “hard foot,” and often drew parallels between soccer and life’s broader lessons. In a 2019 address to Italian youth and athletes, he remarked: “Soccer is a team sport. You can’t have fun alone. And if it’s lived like that, it can do good for your mind and your heart in a society that is exasperated by subjectivism.”
Despite taking a vow in 1990 to abstain from watching television, Francis stayed updated on matches through the radio and, later, the Vatican’s Swiss Guards. They would inform him of San Lorenzo’s and Argentina’s results, ensuring he remained connected to his homeland’s passion.
For decades, Argentines have joked that when it comes to soccer, they’ve been divinely favored: They had “the Hand of God” in Diego Maradona and found their long-awaited “Messiah” in Lionel Messi.
Now, with Pope Francis watching from above, fans of San Lorenzo might just be wondering if their beloved Ciclón has an intercessor in heaven. After all, if soccer is a religion in Argentina, it only makes sense that one of its most faithful fans ended up a saintly supporter in the skies.
Mamelodi Sundowns’ CAF Champions League semi-final opponents will have to wait to hear the final decision regarding a potential points deduction.
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The Egyptian Football Association’s (EFA’s) Appeals Committee said a decision will be made on 8 May 2025 regarding the cancelled Egyptian Premier League clash between Zamalek and Al Ahly on 11 March, a statement read.
The Committee requested that the Egyptian Clubs Association should submit reasons as to why the two previous decisions were made on 15 March and 30 March.
The decisions come after Al Ahly refused to play the Cairo Derby against Zamalek on 11 March after an Egyptian refereeing team was appointed to officiate the game, with the Red Devils demanding a foreign team instead, Pan-Africa Football reported.
On 15 March 2025, the Clubs Association decided that Al Ahly had lost the match and hit the 44-time league champions with a three-point deduction.
However, on 30 March 2025, the Clubs Association backtracked its original decision and cancelled its three-point deduction.
Zamalek and Pyramids, Al Ahly’s closest rivals this season, submitted appeals to have the three-point deduction reinstated, while Al Ahly submitted an appeal to have the match replayed with a foreign referee team instead.
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All parties involved have one week to submit documents and memorandum to support their appeals.
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