CAPE TOWN – If the football rumour mill is to be believed, it looks as if Orlando Pirates utility star Abbubaker Mobara is on his way back home to join Cape Town City.
But, when contacted on Monday, City boss John Comitis played down the speculation. While he admitted his interest in the player, who is capable of doing a job in midfield and defence, Comitis said the financial terms may be a hindrance.
“I’ve been trying to get hold of Irvin (Khoza, Pirates boss) to chat about Mobara, but we just haven’t been able to discuss things as yet,” said Comitis. “The player is on a big contract at Pirates and that’s something we will have to consider. We are interested – he is the type of player who could work well for us.
“But, right now, there’s still a long way to go and we certainly can’t confirm that a deal is in place to bring Mobara to City.”
Mobara, the 25-year-old from Mitchell’s Plain in Cape Town, came through the youth development ranks at Ajax Cape Town before landing a lucrative deal with the Buccaneers in Soweto.
Unfortunately, things have not quite gone according to plan for the Capetonian in Johannesburg. He hasn’t seen much action at Pirates and a move to the Mother City may well be the right move to galvanise the talented footballer’s stalled career.
A measure of Mobara’s quality is the fact that he has earned eight Bafana Bafana caps. And, making him even more valuable as a squad member, he is able to play in the centre of defence, at right-back, in central midfield, or even as a winger.
Meanwhile, Comitis also said that while Mobara was in their thinking for the new PSL season, there wasn’t that urgent a need to strengthen with any other new players.
“Last season we had injury problems with three key players – Roland Putsche, Thabo Nodada and Ivorian Kouassi Kouadja,” said Comitis. “All three players are now fit and ready to go for the new campaign.
“In addition to that, we haven’t yet seen the best of Kermit Erasmus and Dutch midfielder Chris David. The two players came into the team during the back-end of last season and both had fitness issues. Now, with a proper pre-season training programme, we are expecting a lot more from them.
“All in all, we have a well-balanced squad, a harmonious bunch of players, who are working really hard to bring success to the club, and at this stage we are happy with what we have.”