AmaZulu turn to Fifa over Issah transfer fee

If their good fortune continues AmaZulu could have star Ghanaian midfielder Mohammed-Awal Issah back at the club next season.

AmaZulu have lodged a case with world football governing body Fifa over the failure of Serbian club Red Star Belgrade to pay the full outstanding transfer fee after the sale of Issah, club director Graham O'Connor confirmed.

"We expect a hearing to take place within a week. It takes a bit of time, but we have lodged our monies for the case.

"Red Star haven't paid the balance of the transfer fee, which amounts to millions. They made a down-payment, but then reneged on the second payment," said O'Conor.

Midway through the Absa Premiership season AmaZulu sold Issah for an undisclosed amount to the former European champions. After reports of Red Star's debt surfaced and the club failed to make a payment to AmaZulu in March, Usuthu asked that the former Ghanaian junior international be returned to them. O'Connor said they were disappointed to have lost a quality player, as well as money, at a critical period during the campaign.

AmaZulu only just finished in eighth spot and qualified for the MTN8 cup competition, the first time in 16 years they have achieved the feat. Had the Serbians agreed to release Issah back to AmaZulu, then Durban's oldest top-flight club might have done better. They were lucky that Mamelodi Sundowns lost to Ajax Cape Town on the final day of the season last weekend and thus failed to overtake AmaZulu.

"We were happy to rather have the player and forego the money, but now we're left with no player and no money. It's disappointing, considering that we did not want to sell Issah in the first place. We let him go because he was eager to further his career," said O'Connor.

Bafana Bafana striker Bernard Parker is in the same mess after he transferred from Thanda Royal Zulu to Red Star Belgrade at the same time.

Both were initially not paid their salaries on time, confirmed their agent Mike Makaab of Prosport International. If the club doesn't pay the players their salaries on time again, Makaab says he will report the matter to Fifa..

"If it has to go to Fifa, then the ethical thing would be for Fifa to send the players back to their original clubs," he said.