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seal a blockbuster move to Bundesliga side Hamburger SV.
Katsande was one of the standout players for South African Premiership giants Kaizer Chiefs as the Amakhosi won a League and Cup double.
The Zimbabwe midfielder enjoyed good reviews in the Absa Premiership with his coach Stuart Baxter, an Englishman, saying the anchorman was the best defensive midfielder in Super Diski.
Zimbabwean players appear to have turned the anchorman role at the Amakhosi into their portfolio.
Before Katsande’s arrival that position, for close to a decade, was monopolised by another Zimbabwe international, Tinashe Nengomasha.
Baxter singled out Katsande among the five outstanding players who drove Chiefs to the League and Cup double.
“He was a rash-tackling hooligan when I got here,” Baxter said. “We played a friendly and he gave away a penalty by almost breaking someone’s leg.
“Then we played Free State Stars and he kicked someone up the backside.
“I told him to learn the job as a defensive midfielder, or he has no future with this club.
“He told me I should teach him how to do this job and he turned out to be a modern defensive midfielder. He gave us balance.”
There have also been a public outcry here for the gritty midfielder to be included in the Warriors’ squad, which begins training this morning, for the World Cup qualifiers against Egypt and Guinea.
But it seems while the doors into the Warriors have been closed for Katsande, for now, he could get a break into the Bundesliga with expectations high that he could land a contract with Hamburger SV.
Everything appears to be rolling and, soon, it could be a question of just the European club, his management team and his club Kaizer Chiefs striking a deal.
The scouts from the German club, which finished seventh in the 18-team Bundesliga, were in Johannesburg last month, to assess the midfielder.
And it appears they were satisfied with what they saw in the hard-tackling anchorman in the match against SuperSport, which Chiefs drew 1-1, to be crowned champions.
They also watched him in action in the league’s last match against Pretoria University when they lost 1-0 to the newboys.
The scouts then had their last assessment in the last match of the season, the Nedbank Cup final, as the Amakhosi beat SuperSport United 1-0 to win their second major trophy of a very successful season.
Interestingly, it was in these matches that the midfielder also stood out and had a huge impact for his team.
Katsande’s contract with the Soweto giants ends next year in June and it waits to be seen whether Chiefs will cash in on the player now and agree terms with the Germany side.
South African teams tend to hang onto their players by demanding huge transfer fees from overseas clubs but in recent years Chiefs have managed to sell players such as Zimbabwe international, Knowledge Musona, to the Bundesliga.
Already, Kaizer Chiefs and Bafana captain, Itumeleng Khune, who bagged in four awards in the Absa Premiership, has committed himself to another season at Naturena.
Goalkeepers, no matter how good they are, tend to find it difficult to move from Africa to Europe.
Yesterday, Katsande said he was aware of the huge interest from the German side and was watching the developments closely.
“The deal is almost done and my manager and the club have the finer details. The scouts had seen my DVDs and they also came to South Africa to watch me in action,” said Katsande.
“I am so confident that I impressed them because everyone, including my team mates, have been talking about my performance in the past five matches.
“I have also been happy with my performance in those games although as a player you will never be satisfied and should keep on working hard.
“I am ready to face new challenges and I am just praying that everything goes according to plan.”
The former Gunners man, who had remained in South Africa to sort his move, only returned home on Sunday evening also spoke about his omission from the Warriors.
“There are other things we don’t have power over but I just hope my time will come. I just wish the guys all the best on Sunday,” said Katsande.
Hamburger are one of the biggest clubs in the Bundesliga and are currently making a lot of changes in their players and technical staff.
They recently appointed former Bayern Munich player, Oliver Kreuzer, as the club’s new sporting director.
And it is not clear whether the coming in of a new director will have any effect on the imminent move by Katsande.
The club is situated in the hometown of Warriors’ coach Dieter Klaus Pagels.
And the German mentor used to have strong links with the club personnel and in 2011 he organised trials for Warriors’ players Archford Gutu and Abbas Amidu.
At that time, Pagels said the duo, who were still playing in the local Premiership, could fit in the team and the German club was eager to have a look at the Africans.
It was during the same time that the two players went to Sweden for trials with Kalmer and Gutu eventually got a deal with the club while Amidu later joined South African side Kaizer Chiefs.
Yesterday, Pagels could not be drawn to comment on Katsande’s chances at the club saying the team was going through a transitional phase and a lot has changed.
“I cannot really comment on whether his type of play could suit the club as at the moment they are changing players and the playing system.
“This season it was really different.
“Each game was different.
“I watch Germany television at my house but each game they were playing differently and one week they would beat Dortmund the other they would lose a match.
“A lot is changing at the club right now.
“They even changed the manager, and a new manager Oliver Kreuzer was appointed on Sunday.
“He was team mates with the former manager and a lot of players are also coming in,” said Pagels.
Online Reporter