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Eddie Chikamhi

Senior Sports Reporter

ATTACKING midfielder Perfect Chikwende is hoping to beat today’s transfer deadline in Tanzania where he is wanted by football giants Simba SC and ambitious topflight side Azam Football Club.

FC Platinum have confirmed they received offers for the midfielder from Azam FC and have made their demands for the player’s release.

The transfer window in Tanzania opened from Dec 16, 2020 and will close today.

Chikwende arrived in Tanzania yesterday, just 24 hours before the deadline. He was immediately involved in marathon negotiations with the club soon after landing.

Simba SC have also been waiting in the wings with the hope of snatching up the 27-year old Zimbabwean player. Player intermediary George Deda is facilitating the negotiations.

Deda, who was already in Tanzania, was yesterday hoping that the negotiations would be expedited before the close of the transfer window.

“It’s going to be interesting but this happens everywhere. Even in some big leagues, transfers are deals concluded on the last hour before deadline. It’s a matter of the two teams agreeing.

“Apparently, there are two clubs that are interested in the services of Chikwende and both have mandated me to negotiate on their behalf.

“Azam FC have already sent a written proposal to FC Platinum. Simba SC showed interests, but they did not follow that up with something official.

“We are going to negotiate with both clubs, but please note that it’s not going to be a bidding war. We will hand over to FC Platinum the club that meets the terms and conditions of the player.

“The biggest challenge was the time factor, but we hope that everything will sail through without glitches,” said Deda.

FC Platinum spokesperson Chido Chizondo confirmed yesterday that they have received offers from Azam FC. It is understood that the platinum miners have demanded US$50 000 for the services of the forward.

Azam is also home to Zimbabwean trio of Bruce Kangwa, Prince Dube and Never Tigere.

“We have received a proposal from Azam and, apart from them, no other team has conducted us regarding Perfect.

“I can confirm communication has been going on. Proposals have been going back and forth but we haven’t reached an agreement. Once everything is finalised an announcement will be made,” said Chizondo.

Chikwende caught the eye of the Tanzanians when he played a starring role in FC Platinum’s 1-0 win over Simba SC in the first leg of the CAF Champions League first round tie at the National Sports Stadium last month.

He was also on target when FC Platinum beat seasoned campaigners Costa do Sol of Mozambique 2-0 in the second leg of the preliminary round tie, to secure a 4-1 aggregate win for the Zvishavane side.

Before joining the Pure Platinum family, Chikwende played for Black Eagles in 2014, Black Boots 2015 and Bulawayo Chiefs from 2016-2018.

At FC Platinum he won the Castle Lager Premier League Championship in 2019 and the Castle Lager Challenge Cup last year.

At 27, this could be the breakthrough in his career since football in Zimbabwe is currently on the back-burner because of the coronavirus pandemic.