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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter

ZIMBABWEAN footballer, Last Jesi, is expected home this weekend following a nightmarish end to his football career in Sudan. The 26-year-old midfielder has been stranded in the Arab country after authorities at his former club, Al Hilal, had denied him his passport and refused to pay outstanding salaries.

The Warriors fringe player, however, has since been paid his outstanding salaries and received his passport back this week following the intervention of the Footballers Union of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwean Embassies in Sudan and Tanzania.

Jesi’s manager George Deda said the midfielder was relieved by the developments.

“I would like to thank Desmond Maringwa, the president of FUZ, for the excellent role he played. He worked round the clock to make sure that Jesi got his passport back.

“We also want to thank the Zimbabwean Embassy in Tanzania and the staff at the Zimbabwean Embassy in Sudan.

“We really didn’t understand the reason why Al Hilal officials had confiscated Jesi’s passport. It’s a breach of international laws for one to be in possession of another person’s passport except for the issuing government, which is the Government of Zimbabwe. That’s why we also had to engage the Zimbabwean Embassies in Tanzania and Sudan,” said Deda.

Jesi was not happy with the manner his contract was terminated recently. He had signed a three-year deal with the Sudanese giants in September last year for a reported US$65 000 fee.

He made an instant impact, on arrival in Sudan, when he scored on his debut as the Omdurman-based side drew 1-1 against Hay-Al-Arab, in a Sudan Premier League match on December 28.

But, there have been complaints that the club has always been paying his salary late.

Jesi featured for Al Hilal in five Champions League matches and was named man-of-the-match in two games. However, he was released by the club, barely seven months into his adventure.

The 26-year old midfielder is now pushing for a golden handshake, in the region of US$200 000, for the alleged breach, after it emerged the decision to terminate his contract was not by mutual consent.

Jesi is now back on the market with some clubs on the continent reported to have shown interest in his services.

“Jesi is leaving Sudan this week but destination for now is not Zimbabwe,” said Deda.

“There have been a lot of inquiries but we will have to see how it goes.

“There are three clubs from East Africa and two from West Africa vying for his signature. But in football, expression of interest does not necessarily result in the signing of a deal.

“So there are five clubs that are after him and some have offered him to train with them at their facilities. If he is happy with what they will be offering, then we sit down and discuss. Whether anything will materialize, that’s a story for another day.

“But if Jesi is to come back to Zimbabwe, he will not be short for offers as we are already sitting on an offer from CAPS United. We are also sitting on an offer from Dynamos and his parent club (Manica Diamonds).

“Ngezi Platinum Stars have also shown an interest but for the meantime we are pushing for Jesi to continue with his African safari or probably start a new African journey in the Arab world,” said Deda.