New Sabah Times
By FRANCIS XAVIER
KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Football Association (Safa) has reinforced its Premier League squad with the signing of former Angola international striker Aguinaldo Mendes Veiga and Turkmenistan midfielder Ahmet Atayew during the on-going mid-season transfer window.
The association has also decided to extend the contract of its Serbian striker Rodoljub Paunovic.
Acting president Datuk Peter Anthony announced their latest catch during the team’s daily training at the Likas Stadium late Monday.
The Safa boss said the two new signings will fill in the vacuum left by Brazilian Luiz Carlos Junior and Serbian Luka Milunovic respectively.
Junior left the team on mutual consent on Sunday, while Milunovic returned to his parent club Melaka United FC. Peter said both Mendes and Atayew have been signed on a short-term deal.
“They have put pen to paper until the end of the season respectively on Monday.
“They both impressed during trials and have also cleared their medical tests,” said Peter, while adding that with the latest development it would help them strengthen the team, especially in attack and midfield.
“Now our aim is to make sure they will be eligible for selection in our next league fixture on May 17 where we will play away to UKM FC,” he added.
On Paunovic’s contract that is due to expire on June 2, Peter said the latter has extended his contract until November 30, 2019.
It was certainly positive news for the squad as the highly popular Paunovic is Tambadau’s leading scorer with five goals while his work-rate on the pitch has won many admirers among the local fans.
“Paunovic has proved himself to be an important member of the team…not only is he playing well by going all out in every match but he combines well with his team-mates. That is why we have extended his contract…he deserves it.
“As for Mendes and Atayew, they will also be offered contract extensions if they convince us with their performance. Tambadau’s fourth foreign import for the Asian player slot is South Korean central defender Park Tae Su.
Meanwhile, Peter believed that they are on the right track in their bid to win promotion to the Super League next year.
He said at the moment, he is satisfied with the overall development of the team before insisting every member of the team, players, coaches and officials alike must continue to work hard to ensure that they realise their common goal.
“Overall, I’m happy with the progress made by the team. We are in a good position in the league and now we must stay consistent and produce the desired results.
“If we can do that then I believe we will qualify for the Malaysia Cup, and more importantly achieve our main target of winning promotion to the Super League next year,” said Peter.
Safa vice president Datuk Juil Nuatim, treasurer Yap Wai Loon, secretary general Andrew Majanggim and his assistant Andrew Laban, as well as team manager Henry Saimpon, were also present at the unveiling of the new foreign players done in a simple ceremony.
For the record, Tambadau under head coach Jelius Ating are currently third in the 11-team league having collected 21 points from six wins, three draws and two losses and trail leaders Johor Darul Ta’zim II (JDT II) by three points and second-placed UiTM FC by two points.
