Orlando Pirates midfielder Siphelo Baloni, who is on loan at Chippa United, was not aware he was wanted by Mamelodi Sundowns before he joined the Sea Robbers in 2023.
COACH’S SECRET
Playing great football for All-Stars in the Mostepe Foundation Championship in 2022, the 24-year-old Baloni first caught the attention of Sundowns before eventually making a move to Orlando Pirates.
Baloni, whose home is Eastern Cape’s iDutywa but was raised in Sasolburg, has revealed that his All-Stars coach Sinethemba Badela kept Sundowns’ interest a secret so as not to disrupt the player’s focus.
“I remember there was this other day I had a meeting with coach Themba, he told me that Sundowns has been looking for me, but I didn’t want to tell you,” Baloni told iDiski Times.
“I told him that I think he should have told me because now I’ve already signed at Pirates. If he told me, I was going to say that Pirates should wait until the season ends so I should decide if I am taking this one or not.
“But I also thought about it, Pirates is a big team and I’m young, I’m from the NFD. It is something else for me. It is a big achievement and also if I go there, it is fine I am going to face some challenges,” the Orlando Pirates midfielder added.
DID SIPHELO BALONI’S COACH DO THE RIGHT THING?
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NEXT ORLANDO PIRATES FIXTURE
Meanwhile, the Buccaneers‘ next game will be a trip to Algeria to face CR Belouizdad in the CAF Champions League Group C opener. The game will be on Tuesday, November 26, at 21:00.
