Baroka FC chairman Khurishi Mphahlele has reacted to Veluyeke Zulu's actions following a brief trial with the Motsepe Foundation Championship outfit.
Last week, as per a KickOff article, a jubilant Mphahlele and head coach Morgan Mammila couldn't contain their excitement of having the former AmaZulu FC player in their pre-season squad.
Bakgaga had even tabled a two-year offer for Zulu, though his signing depended on passing a mandatory medical.
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However, in a sudden and unexpected twist to the tale, the player sneaked out of Limpopo last weekend to sign for top-flight returnees Marumo Gallants.
The latter, who are coached by Dylan Kerr, will be campaigning in the top tier after acquiring the status of financially troubled Moroka Swallows.
"Yes, Zulu was here but for a trial," Mphahlele confirmed to this publication this week.
"You can't keep somebody who is here for a trial forever. I think the whole thing happened on a weekend.
"We gave all players a weekend off, and then he disappeared.
We have to assess everybody. We can't sign anyone without doing a proper assessment. We can't just sign somebody just because he comes from whoever.
"Everybody has to be assessed because teams are not the same, different teams play different [types of] football.
"We must first see if a player fits into the football we want to play, we can't just sign somebody straight from the streets, no," added the club boss.
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Mphahlele, though, was quick to add that there is no bad blood between the club and the 29-year-old as they understand his situation.
"No, we are not cross with him, he doesn't owe us anything. We are not disappointed. We even appreciate to have him in our training sessions.
"There are a couple of other players we still assessing. We won't rush to sign a player, only to release him in three months.
"We want players we know will finish the contract. We already have the team from last season, there is no need to rush."
Zulu is the second player to pull a Houdini on Baroka after Gift Motupa reportedly did the same shortly after signing from Mamelodi Sundowns.