Chronicle Editor
Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
FAILURE to return the club’s socks has reportedly led to Chicken Inn FC attempting to reverse striker Obriel Chirinda’s move to Bulawayo Chiefs.
Chiefs registered Chirinda in this transfer window following the expiry of his contract with Chicken Inn on December 31, 2021.
The Gamecocks replaced Chirinda with Marlvin Hwata from Cranborne Bullets and the latter made an instant impact scoring a brace in Chicken Inn’s 3-0 win against Tenax CS FC.
Chirinda made his Chiefs debut last Sunday and scored the second goal as the Ninjas beat champions FC Platinum 2-0.
Chicken Inn then wrote to the Premier Soccer League seeking withdrawal of Chirinda’s licence, alleging that he was improperly registered.
Chicken Inn had been withholding the player’s clearance because he didn’t surrender all the club’s equipment.
“It’s not that Chirinda has a contract with Chicken Inn, the issue is that he didn’t surrender all the club’s property when he left. To be cleared, he was supposed to bring back everything, including the socks. How then he was cleared and registered remains a mystery,” said a source.
Player clearances on the centralised Transfer Matching System (TMS) are done by Zifa, through the TMS manager.
Chicken Inn, who take on Chiefs in a potentially explosive derby at Luveve Stadium tomorrow, have threatened to approach the courts should the PSL fail to withdraw the registration of Chirinda.
According to information obtained on player registration, when a player signs a contract with a club, it is uploaded on the TMS to complete the registration process.
Once the player’s contract expires and he decides to move, the club he joins sends a request for clearance into the TMS.
Should the former club ignore the request, the TMS manager, with authority from Fifa is allowed to issue a clearance so that the player’s career isn’t unnecessarily affected.
After realising that clubs were selfishly holding onto players after the expiry of their contracts, Fifa, Fifpro and the World Leagues Forum agreed on a standard player contract, which is uploaded on TMS.
Zifa spokesperson and acting chief executive officer Xolisani Gwesela declined to comment on the saga, saying they had not received the letter of complaint from Chicken Inn.
The PSL is expected to respond to Chicken Inn today.
– @ZililoR
Online Reporter