Caps United's Nadolo bid flops

CAPS United's bid for forward King Nadolo has collapsed amid reports that the Harare football giants, who had vowed to splash cash to bring him on board before the close of the transfer window next week, failed to meet the demands of his employers Tel One.

Although the player is said to have agreed in principle to join Lloyd Chitembwe's side, negotiations collapsed last week following a deadlock over transfer fees. Caps United president Farai Jere told NewsDay Sport yesterday that they pulled out of the deal last week after negotiations failed to bear fruit.

"Yes, we had targeted him (King Nadolo) and while the player himself had agreed in principle to join Caps United, we couldn't meet the demands by his club TelOne. We had really wanted to have him on board but the demands were beyond our reach, so I can tell you the deal is now off," Jere said.

Ordinarily, Zimbabwean clubs rely on buying players whose contracts will have expired at the end of the season and in such cases they avoid paying transfer fees because the players will be free agents.

However, the current transfer window which closes on March 31 is complicated because most players have running contracts since the season started a few months ago which follows that those clubs who want to plunge in the market to boost playing staff will have to pay the transfer fees through the nose.

Now with Caps United pulling out of the deal, it will galvanise bitter city rivals Dynamos who have also been pursuing him into action for another dance with the club. Dynamos coach Tonderai Ndiraya said the Glamour Boys would only close their pursuit once they secure Nadolo and another goalkeeper. Nadolo did not renew his contract with Dynamos after it ran out last year. He reverted to being a TelOne player.

The forward had been linked with a move to a Georgian side in Europe. He was reported to have joined Georgia Ligue 2 side FC Maram Tbilis several months ago.

However, although he had done all the paperwork including securing a visa, he is still in the country, suggesting the deal might have failed to materialise and this has attracted interest from several clubs including Dynamos and Caps United.

In 2019, Nadolo signed for TelOne in mid season and made an immediate impact contributing vital goals and assists. He won the Football Union of Zimbabwe footballer of the month for November. Despite playing half the season, he finished third in the Golden Boot race with 11 goals three behind winner Clive Augusto.

Caps United, who have not hidden the desire to win the championship this term, had hoped to plunge back into the market to bolster their playing personnel despite the side brimming with such stars as midfielder Tatenda Tavengwa, Rodwell Chinyengetere, Dennis Dauda, Ian Nyoni and Marshall Machazane, among others.