With American club Minnesota United reported to be in 'hot pursuit' of Orlando Pirates forward Relebohile Mofokeng before the transfer window closes on Thursday, KickOff has the latest on the story.
Reports emerged on Tuesday that Minnesota had submitted a bid for the services of Mofokeng and with the Major League Soccer (MLS) transfer window slamming shut on Thursday, American publication ESPN has followed it up by reporting the club is 'in hot pursuit' of the 20-year-old so as not to be overtaken by time.
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According to the report, Minnesota submitted a bid of "over $2 million" (R35,4 million) to acquire the Sharpeville native.
This website has been reliably informed that Pirates did indeed receive a bid of $2 million from the MLS outfit for the services of Mofokeng, but as things stand, have rejected the offer.
It is understood Bucs are not willing to sell the Bafana Bafana international and it looks unlikely The Loons will complete the transfer before the MLS transfer window deadline on Thursday.
That is especially because, according to a reliable source close to the situation, the 2024/25 PSL Footballer of the Season nominee is not particularly keen to move to the United States.
This publication also has it on good authority the Soweto giants received a more substantial bid than that which was put by Minnesota from an unnamed European club recently but also rejected the offer.
Head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou was asked about the transfer speculation linking Mofokeng with clubs abroad, with the MLS side among them, in his post-match press conference following a narrow league win over Stellenbosch FC on Wednesday.
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He, however, did not want to be drawn into the reports, stating he had not been following the news in the media, a diversion which was not unexpected, given the sensitive nature of the subject.
Minnesota have South African-born former Maritzburg United striker Bongokuhle Hlongwane on their roster, who has been a hit with the club’s fans since joining in 2021.
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