Kaizer Chiefs Transfer News: ‘We need to bring Witbooi’

The Soweto giants heavyweights Kaizer Chiefs had a massive opportunity to sign talented attacker Emile Witbooi.

Witbooi has been rapidly rising especially for his team Cape Town City who missed a return to the Premier Soccer League by a whisker. The 18-year-old, who is under an established sports agency Roc Nations, has also been a target for some top teams abroad.

He was chased by Polish Ekstraklasa team Gornik Zabrze who wanted to pay R15 million for him but City felt he worth more than that.

In the 2026 U20 COSAFA, Witbooi played a vital role to help the team deliver, especially in the semi-final where he scored a significant goal in the 4-2 victory. Nevertheless, the teenager could have been part of the Glamour Boys as revealed by the Amakhosi DStv Diski Challenge head coach Vela Khumalo.

How Chiefs lost Witbooi

Chiefs had a chance to take in Witbooi for the U13 team, but the management opted against having him, a move that Khumalo is regretting, alongside the technical team.

“Even though I was not necessarily involved, I think Emile now who was with me at the national team. The World Cup he was with me,” Khumalo told the Arena Sport Show.

“When he came to the club he was coming for U13 back then, so we couldn’t see much from him at that time. Then later on, we said he was once here. Emile was once with us. I remember he came for assessment, but he was very, very young.

“Later on, I asked Walter Steenbok [Technical Director at the time], I said, ‘man we need to bring this boy back again’ and he said, ‘no you guys didn’t take him, so, he’s gone now’. I took it with a bit of a pinch of salt,” he concluded.