In the latest edition of Negotiating Behind the Scenes, former Kaizer Chiefs striker Daniel Matsau reveals how the Glamour Boys almost lost out on his signature to Orlando Pirates and Moroka Swallows.
Who I signed for?
"It was 1997 when I signed for Kaizer Chiefs. I was at a club owned by a mine, Lorraine Lions FC which was campaigning in the third division.
How did you find out?
"My best friend, Patrick Mbuthu recommended me to Bra Sam Motaung who spotted him for Chiefs.
"After that, they followed my games in the South Africa Under-20 squad.
"But then what happened is, Swallows' owners at the time, Chicco Twala and Mike Mangena booked me a room at the Carlton Hotel in the Carlton Centre.
"I was sitting at the hotel reception waiting for both of them, when an Orlando Pirates official saw me sitting there.
"He immediately phoned Irvin Khoza informing him I was at the reception. Within 15 minutes Khoza was at the hotel.
"Khoza said to me, hey boy I've been told a lot about you. I've never seen you play, but I trust this guy who phoned me about you. I want us to sign a deal right now, I'm giving you R60 000 cash right now.
"My response was, no Mr Khoza, the thing is I'm here because of Chicco and Mangena. They are the ones who booked this hotel for me. Let me first hear what they have to say, and then after that, we will talk. He said fine.
"When Chicco got there, he produced a contract and said to me he was purchasing a townhouse and a car for me that same day, and put you in a top school.
"But the thing is, I couldn't take the townhouse offer while my family back home was staying in a shack. I trained with Swallows for two days.
"I told Chicco I'll have to speak to my parents first about the offer. He said fine.
"When I got home, I gave Bra Sam a call, the late Jeff Butler was coaching Chiefs at the time but left soon after and was replaced by Paul Dolezar. Sam said to me, no don't sign with any of those teams, I'm coming right away to fetch you. He came on the third day though.
"When I arrived at Chiefs, they offered me an R80 000 salary. That's how I ended up at Kaizer Chiefs."
Where did you meet?
"In Naturena at the Kaizer Chiefs Village, in Kaizer Motaung's office."
Who was there?
"Mr Motaung was not present, only the club's officials the likes of Abdulla Mayet were there and my guardian Mr Goliath."
What surprised you?
"To be signed within four days by a team like Kaizer Chiefs while I was expecting to first train with them for at least three weeks.
"I think my performance in the Under-20 national team played a big role in that."
Did you get what you wanted?
"Coming from amateur level, I was not exposed to such things, so I thought that was a good deal for me."
Did you see out the contract?
"I signed for three years, stayed two seasons, the third one I was loaned out to Bloemfontein Celtic."
What you would change?
"The salary was because I was supporting two families at the time, the money was not that big because I was staying in the club's townhouse which had furniture, so when I signed R80 000 seemed big, not knowing it was too little."