Royal AM coach John Maduka has acknowledged the weight and impact of the FIFA-imposed transfer ban on his side, with the club unable to bolster their squad for three transfer windows so far. 

The Pietermaritzburg-based outfit is into their third successive season without bringing in new faces after they were banned from registering new players due to their unsettled financial dispute with former striker Samir Nurkovic. Maduka’s men finished in 13th place last season, narrowly escaping the relegation playoff spot and the Malawian-born mentor has called for improvement, challenging his charges to rise above the challenges they are facing. 

“We know that we didn’t do well last season, so it’s very important for us to go all out this season, ” Maduka said. 

“We’ve got our challenges, but we cannot feel sorry for ourselves, instead we move forward. At the same time, we’ve also introduced more of the young players that are coming into the team and we hope they will come with a different energy to help the team achieve its goals.” 

The Royal AM mentor lamented that they can’t have an established striker, a midfielder, and a good defender to help the team stamp their authority in the league. However, he sees a silver lining to the ban as it creates a pathway to the first team for the youngsters. “It’s difficult, every coach wants to reinforce the team every season, ” said Maduka. 

“Not so many players but you want the striker that can score more goals, the midfielder that can be influential to your team, the defender that can be able to help the upcoming youngsters. 

“So, it’s always crucial, we can’t sign [players] but at the end of the day it’s also an opportunity for the young ones [to show their talent], but we need to be patient with them, and we cannot put too much pressure on them or try to rely on them a lot.”

He continued: “It’s always tricky [to motivate players], especially if the players know that we can’t sign, but I strongly believe they are professional players they should behave in a professional way whereby they have to do well and as a team, as a coach, we try to demand results.” 

Royal AM will face an anxious wait for the outcome of their appeal against the ban with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on 13 September, and the club will only have seven days to strengthen their squad should they get a favorable verdict. 

“We are hoping that everything goes according to plan and this thing [transfer ban] goes away so that we become normal like any other club and be able to compete. The league is very tough, all the other teams have reinforced their squads, but there’s nothing we can do, ” Maduka said.

Article by Trevor Magoro