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The 49-cap Burundi international enabled Batoto ba Mungu to pocket a cool 37 million shillings when he left for Sundowns, strengthening the club financially.
Ex-Sundowns striker Fiston Abdul Razak has revealed the reason he decided to return to Sofapaka after originally spending time at the club between 2014 and 2015.
The Burundi international, who is revered for his excellent knack for finding the back of the net, returned to Batoto ba Mungu on a one-year contract, having enjoyed successful stints for different clubs in South Africa, Morocco, Angola, Oman and Algeria.
Razak revealed that he held crunch talks with club president Elly Kalekwa on a desire to help return the club to the upper-echelons of challenging for silverware and representing the club at continental competitions “out of passion” after being told the club had been struggling financially.
Ironically, the 49-cap Burundi international enabled Sofapaka to pocket a cool 37 million shillings when he left for Sundowns, strengthening the club financially.
“If you look, when I left Sofapaka for Sundowns, I went on to play for several clubs, almost eight. It got to a point where because I was following Sofapaka a lot online and seeing that the club was struggling financially,” Razak told Pulse Sports.
“I asked the president (Kalekwa) why that was the case and he told me that he was struggling to run the club. I was to join the club after leaving Morocco in 2022 but told him I wanted to play for one or two more foreign clubs before returning to Sofapaka to help return the club to its great heights.
“When I left Morocco, there was a club from Oman (Sur FC) that wanted me immediately. I had to ask the president to allow me to play there for a season before pledging to join the club later because it was hurting me to see the club languishing in unpleasant places like 10th and 11th.”
Razak, who has previously been feted as the best locally-based African player, is among 17 new faces at the club.
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“It feels good to be back at Sofapaka after seven years. This team is like a family and it is where I honed my skills, I could never forget it and it’s an honor to be back to help them win the local trophies and help them qualify for Champions League football next season,”
“After gaining vast experience in several top leagues, I feel this is the right time to offer my experience and skills to steer Sofapaka back to their glory days.”
Meanwhile, Razak believes that the club has assembled enough quality to challenge for the title next season.
“I have trained just two or three times since returning. I believe we have the quality to return to the big time. I see no difference between the quality now and the one we had in 2014 when we were playing in the continental competitions.”
Razak scored 17 goals in 26 league appearances for Batoto Ba Mungu between 2014 and 2015.
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08:38 - 02.08.2023
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