Bloemfontein Celtic flop back at Dynamos

RODRECK Mutuma made an appearance at Dynamos training yesterday as he angles for a return to the Premier Soccer League (PSL) team he left just over a year ago.

The towering forward is a free agent after being released by South African Premiership side Bloemfontein Celtic last month, a club he joined during the January transfer window last year.

Mutuma was signed by then Celtic coach Clinton Larsen, but has struggled for game time since the arrival of Ernst Middendorp, playing just two games since the German coach took over this year.

Speaking to NewsDay Sport yesterday, the 26-year-old said he would love to return to Dynamos and resurrect his career after a tumultuous period at the Bloemfontein club.

"Dynamos is my team at heart. They contributed immensely to my career growth and I will forever be grateful to them. When I decided that I should return back home, the first team I thought of joining was Dynamos," Mutuma said.

"My manager Edzai (Kasinauyo) is handling the issue, but if the chance avails itself, I would want to rejoin Dynamos. I have spoken to the coach and he has said he would want to have me back so I think everything will be clear when the team resumes training on Wednesday (tomorrow).

"I severed ties with Celtic because of lack of game time. I wanted to play, but the coach wouldn't give me a chance. It happens in soccer and I have to move on."

Kasinauyo said Dynamos would be the first choice for his player, but there was a possibility of a return to the South African Premiership in the July transfer window.

He, however, said two unnamed teams had shown interest in the player.

Dynamos manager Richard Chihoro said negotiations for Mutuma could begin anytime soon as the club were looking to strengthen their strike force.

"We would love to sign him as soon as possible," Chihoro said yesterday, in an apparent show of desperation for a proven striker by the Dynamos technical team.

"We should start negotiations with his handlers anytime this week, but the good thing is that the player is willing to return so there should not be many complications. We worked well with him and his qualities are unquestionable."

Dynamos are desperate for a good striker after the team fired blanks despite dominating possession in their opening two rounds of the season.

The defending champions beat How Mine 1-0 in the opening weekend courtesy of an own goal and they were stunned by ZPC Kariba 1-0 last Sunday, conceding in the last minute of the match.

However, Mutuma, who won the PSL golden boot in his last season before he left for South Africa, believes the Dynamos strikers would come right as the season progresses.

"It happened to me when I first arrived at Dynamos. They (Dynamos strikers) are low on confidence and what they need is a goal and everything will fall into place," Mutuma said.

Meanwhile, the team failed to access their training venue at Zimphos yesterday and ended up having a team talk outside the facility before dispersing.

Club secretary-general Webster Chikengezha was forced to deny rumours following the incident that the team had been locked out for non-payment of rentals.

He said the security marshal who had the keys to the facility was away as the team does not usually train on Mondays.