By Fungai Muderere
Prominent player agent Gibson Mahachi has advised Warriors’ centre-back Teenage Hadebe to stay put at his relegated Turkish side Yeni Malatyaspor.
Hadebe’s team was demoted from the Turkish Super Liga following a 0-1 loss to Gaziantep on Saturday.
Hadebe joined the Turkish outfit from South African glamour club Kaizer Chiefs in July last year and made 23 appearances in the league for the side and 28 in all competitions.
Mahachi believes any move by the central defender right now would be premature, as he had not yet fully settled into the European game.
“It’s unfortunate that his club has been relegated, but it will not be prudent for Hadebe to consider moving to another club or to another league in Europe. He should just stay put at Yeni Malatyaspor.
“There is no wisdom in just changing clubs. Football in Turkey is very competitive and the fact that Teenage was commanding a first team jersey at Malatyaspor should give him all the wisdom to stay put,” said Mahachi.
Yeni Malatyaspor have only been in the Turkish Super Lig for three seasons.
The Fifa-accredited agent’s sentiments come against the backdrop of reports that six-time Turkish Super Liga champions Trabzonspor, which is home to ex-Chelsea and Nigerian star John Obi Mikel and Daniel Sturridge, are interested in signing Hadebe.
A source close to Hadebe revealed that that Trabzonspor had attempted to lure the towering defender late last year, but his club refused to entertain any offers.
“Trabzonspor made a huge offer for Hadebe’s services late last year, but Malatyaspor refused to release him in January. It seems they were thinking of maybe releasing him after the end of the 2019/2020 season and could perhaps listen to offers now that they’ve been relegated,” said the source.
The Warriors’ defender is also reportedly being pursued by an unnamed club in Greece.
Hadebe’s side finished the Turkish campaign on 32 points, three behind Rizespor, who survived the chop
They had a good chance of surviving on goal difference if they had won their last game, but their 0–3 pummeling by Rizespor last week condemned them to the second tier league for next season.
Malatyaspor’s relegation comes as a huge disappointment following their exploits last season which saw the club finishing fifth and qualifying for the second round of the Uefa Europa League qualifiers.
Malatyaspor broke into the Turkish Super Liga for the first time in their history after finishing as runners-up in the TFF 1st League in 2017.
They managed to secure 10th place in their first season (2017/2018) in the topflight before the fifth place finish achieved last season.
That 2018/2019 performance won them a ticket to the Uefa Europa League preliminary round, but they soon waved goodbye to the European adventure following a 3-2 aggregate defeat by Partizan Belgrade in the third qualifying round. The Chronicle
