Cassius Mailula is not in two minds about where he would like to play if he were to return to South Africa.
The 23-year-old is at a crossroads in his career after the end of his loan spell at Moroccan club Wydad Casablanca.
Mailula belongs to Major League Soccer (MLS) club Toronto FC, whom he joined in 2023 from his “first love,” Mamelodi Sundowns. However, it appears he has no future at the Canadian club, leading to questions over his future.
African Times understands Mailula is looking for a permanent move this time, and his first preference would be Europe.
Be that as it may, he has not closed the door on a potential return home, and in this case, he knows exactly where he’d go.
“I love Sundowns, I love Sundowns… Sundowns is home,” Mailula said on Metro FM’s Sports Night Amplified with Andile Ncube on Wednesday evening.
“I think even the president and the chairman know, you know. That is my first love, and obviously, before I can think of other things, other teams, I’d obviously start with Sundowns, and after that, if things don’t go well in terms of negotiations and all of that, then I can start to think of other things. But for me, Sundowns is my home,” he reiterated.
As it stands, his agent, Karabo Tshabuse of P Management, has confirmed there are offers from North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
“Cassius is taking a break at home; we’ve agreed on timelines with Toronto, and they’ve been so gracious,” she said.
However, Tshabuse acknowledged that they are treading carefully after the frustrating spell at Toronto, where Mailula said he has “unfinished business,” but on the other hand, he doesn’t appear to be in their plans.
It is with this in mind that they are not rushing into anything in case he ends up at another Toronto, where he becomes a squad player.
“I have three offers on my desk at the moment. But we are doing the same exercise. Experience is the best school for anybody, and now we are a little bit more cautious. We want to speak to head coaches; we want to understand what we are getting into.
“I can reveal one (offer) is Egyptian, one of them is European, but ‘baby Europe’—not the top five leagues and the Middle East. But we might announce something completely different; it’s that time of the season.
“The local guys have shown just support for Cassius, wanting to understand what is going on with him, and he’s open to that, but at the moment we’re taking our time.”
