SOME Caps United players who signed for the club in the last transfer window are beginning to wonder if they made the right decision to join the Harare giants, who are now struggling to pay them and have been intolerant of any form of dissent.
BY TERRY MADYAUTA
The players, who spoke to NewsDay Weekender Sport on condition of anonymity for fear of being victimised, expressed regrets as they had discovered that the grass was not that green at the Green Machine.
Last week, a group of Caps United players besieged the club vice-president Nhamo Tutisani’s offices in Eastlea, Harare, demanding that they be paid outstanding salaries.
The players had a verbal confrontation with Tutisani, who promised to get rid of vocal players such as Phineas Bamusi and Innocent Mucheneka.
He was heard making a bold declaration that certain players would not see game time when the season starts.
Players that did not participate in the confrontation have since been paid while the vocal ones have been left out.
The club got rid of a host of players from last season after encountering the same problem of friction between players and management over remuneration.
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With the season yet to start, Bamusi has since said that he is looking to engineer a move away from the club because of his frosty relationship with Tutisani, the co-owner.
Other players have also come out to say that they would better off elsewhere. One player said that he had high hopes when he joined the 2016 champions, but is beginning to wonder whether he made the right move for his career.
“I joined Caps United because I wanted to grow, I wanted to be part of a team that can provide a bigger platform in the capital city, but after the stand-off, I am getting worried. I was not there, but what unfolded gets me wondering if it is wise to feel safe as a Caps player,” he said. “Who knows maybe tomorrow I can be fired for airing my grievance, but just like any worker in any set-up, I must be allowed to.
Another player said he was worried about his welfare, having left a club that was stable financially.
“It’s always difficult when you realise that the one you work for is not really concerned about your welfare, especially during this time, where life is difficult for us,” he said.
“To move from one club to another means we would be looking for better pastures, but when it turns to be like this, then it will be a dead end. I came to Caps because I expected a better life, a better stay at the club and I hoped they would be professional, at least better than my previous club, but this is not it. It’s a bad tart and one wonders where it’s going. I believe this one is a lesson to us that in future we make the decisions right moves when we join teams.”
Caps United is expected to be one of the main challengers for the league title when football returns.
