Bafana Bafana winger Monnapule Saleng has not been on good terms with the Orlando Pirates management for quite some time.
Reports have it that the 27-year-old was unhappy with what he was getting despite the contributions and impact he made for the Sea Robbers. It is rumoured that the attacker wanted to renegotiate his deal with the club, but the Soweto giants stood their ground, leading to a strained relationship.
Saleng hasn't featured for the Buccaneers since early December when he played against Al Ahly in Group C of the 2024/25 Caf Champions League outing at Orlando Stadium that ended goalless. Despite his contract ending at the end of last season, Bucs exercised their option of extending Saleng's stay.
The winger has been linked to Kaizer Chiefs, who are still restructuring, but nothing concrete has been revealed from the respective parties.
‘It doesn't work like that'
Bucs legend has now cleared Pirates of any wrongdoing, insisting it was an agreement made between the parties.
“Here's what I'd like to say about this matter, maybe even for any footballer. You can come into the team [in the PSL] from an amateur team, and you negotiate a contract,” Eugene Zwane told SNL24.
“Remember, the contract is negotiated by you or someone else on your behalf, and once it's agreed, it's agreed. You can't know in the middle of the season, you find out ‘player X, Y, Z earns R50 000 more than me, but my contribution is better than his, therefore I need to have my contract changed'.”
‘Honour the negotiated contract'
“It does not work like that, you see. You negotiate a contract, and after you can go to your representatives to open discussions to request a review of your contract. But you can't now say ‘I'm not going to play because somebody else earns more than me, or I'm not happy with my package, or I feel like I'm being cheated.
“You signed that contract, you negotiated it, you must honour it. That's how contracts work, and you work hard enough, so when the contract expires, you're in a much stronger position to negotiate a better deal, that can even make up for the money you feel you should've been paid, plus the increase you feel you deserve for the term going forward.
“It's negotiations, you just need to be smart or have people who are smart to handle it for you, but you can't fight your team over a contract you negotiated yourself or was negotiated on your behalf by your management team,” Zwane concluded.
