Chiefs confirm Velebayi and Baartman availability

Fresh from being cleared by the Safa arbitration, Asanele Velebayi and Luke Baartman are expected to officially don the gold and black of Kaizer Chiefs soon.

The duo signed for Chiefs from relegated Cape Town Spurs in the off season but their debuts at Naturena were delayed by Spurs’ reluctance to hand their clearances.

Spurs believed the pair still had existing contracts with them yet NSL rules stipulates that at the relegation of a member club the professional status of players ceases.

Spurs lost both cases at PSL DRC and at Safa arbitration.

With that ruling, both Velebayi and Baartman can be handed their starts to life at Naturena.

“Following a two-week international break, Chiefs are expected to welcome back several players recovered from injury. Additionally, Mfundo Vilakazi and Luke Baartman return from duty at the U20 World Cup in Chile. Baartman and Asanele Velebayi have also been cleared to play after finalization of their appealed cases, adding depth to the squad for the upcoming matches,” read a Kaizer Chiefs statement.

It remains to be seen if whether they will be handed their debuts this weekend when Chiefs travel to Lubumbashi for their Caf Confederation Cup first leg of their second preliminary round match against AS Simba.