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Chicken Inn accused of abandoning injured goalkeeper
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Chicken Inn FC has come under fire after goalkeeper Issah Ali accused the club of abandoning him following a serious training ground injury, despite being under contract until December 2025.
In a strongly worded personal statement titled "Abandoned While Injured – My Story as a Chicken Inn FC Player", Ali claims he sustained the injury during an official training session in September 2024 while fully committed to the club.
Instead of receiving medical and financial support, Ali alleges the club stopped paying his salary, offered no treatment assistance, and placed him on the transfer list just four months later, in January 2025.
"They left me with no support and no treatment," Ali wrote in the statement, which he addressed to the media, football authorities, and the public.
He dismissed as false the club's alleged claim that he joined Chicken Inn already injured, saying no medical tests were conducted when he signed.
"That failure was not mine; it was the club's responsibility to assess and protect both the player and the team," Ali said.
The 27-year-old says he tried to resolve the matter amicably by proposing two solutions - either financial help with medical costs or a fair settlement that would allow him to recover and continue his career. But he claims the club has ignored his efforts.
"To this day, I remain unfit to play. I have received no medical support. My salary and signing-on fee remain unpaid," Ali said, adding that the ordeal has left him unable to provide for his family.
The goalkeeper emphasised that his statement was not intended as a personal attack but as a call for better welfare protections for injured players in Zimbabwean football.
In response to mounting public criticism, Chicken Inn communications officer Nkululeko Nkala expressed surprise that the issue had gone public, saying discussions with the player were ongoing.
"We are surprised as Chicken Inn that the issue is now all over social media when we are still on the negotiating table with the player. As a club, we can't comment any further," Nkala said.
Ali has since appealed to the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) to intervene and urged the football community to push for stronger protection for injured athletes.
In a strongly worded personal statement titled "Abandoned While Injured – My Story as a Chicken Inn FC Player", Ali claims he sustained the injury during an official training session in September 2024 while fully committed to the club.
Instead of receiving medical and financial support, Ali alleges the club stopped paying his salary, offered no treatment assistance, and placed him on the transfer list just four months later, in January 2025.
"They left me with no support and no treatment," Ali wrote in the statement, which he addressed to the media, football authorities, and the public.
He dismissed as false the club's alleged claim that he joined Chicken Inn already injured, saying no medical tests were conducted when he signed.
"That failure was not mine; it was the club's responsibility to assess and protect both the player and the team," Ali said.
The 27-year-old says he tried to resolve the matter amicably by proposing two solutions - either financial help with medical costs or a fair settlement that would allow him to recover and continue his career. But he claims the club has ignored his efforts.
"To this day, I remain unfit to play. I have received no medical support. My salary and signing-on fee remain unpaid," Ali said, adding that the ordeal has left him unable to provide for his family.
The goalkeeper emphasised that his statement was not intended as a personal attack but as a call for better welfare protections for injured players in Zimbabwean football.
In response to mounting public criticism, Chicken Inn communications officer Nkululeko Nkala expressed surprise that the issue had gone public, saying discussions with the player were ongoing.
"We are surprised as Chicken Inn that the issue is now all over social media when we are still on the negotiating table with the player. As a club, we can't comment any further," Nkala said.
Ali has since appealed to the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) to intervene and urged the football community to push for stronger protection for injured athletes.
Source - The Chronicle
