SuperSport United CEO Stan Matthews is excited about the trajectory of Shandre Campbellโs career with Club Brugge, anticipating a significant financial return in the future due to their retained percentage of any future sale.
SuperSport sold Campbell to the Belgian side at the start of the season, after he made 20 PSL appearances, scoring two goals and providing five assists.
Upon signing, the left winger was placed in Brugge’s reserve team, not the first team, where he has been impressing with strong performances. In 13 appearances this season, Campbell has scored six goals, including the opener in their 3-2 away win against Belgian giants RSC Anderlecht II on Saturday.
โWe have let many players go in the past, but we are building a sustainable model for our football club,โ said Matthews. โPeople will say, โOh, Shandre, you let Shandre go too early.โ Yes, from a traditional football perspective, we would have loved to have kept Shandre for another two or three seasons, and maybe he would have been worth even more money by then.โ
Matthews, one of the most experienced football administrators in the country, former PSL CEO, and current PSL EXCO member, confirmed the good news for Campbell after a successful few months. โBut the acceleration he is showing in Europe right nowโฆ he has just been called up from the second team to the Brugge first team. Their CEO (Bob Madou) called me on Friday morning to say Shandre has been promoted to the first team after five (six) goals and two assists with the reserve team,โ said Matthews.
โSo, now he is training full-time with the first team, and a player like Shandre, in two or three yearsโ time, could be worth 40-50 million Euros. Our percentage sale on Shandre, although we are not getting anything nowโwe are paying the price, and it is toughโin two or three yearsโ time, our percentage sale could be worth literally dozens of millions of rands, which is great and sustainable for the club. It is the same thing we got for Ime Okon, who has two opportunities abroad.โ
Club Brugge is the former club of South African international Percy Tau, who won the league title with them and also featured in the UEFA Champions League.
It is also the former club of Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos, who played for them from 1983 to 1988, Ivan Periลกiฤ, former Bafana Bafana midfielder Elrio van Heerden, Nigeriaโs Daniel Amokachi, and Paraguay international Antolรญn Alcaraz. Bruggeโs senior team is currently second in the Belgian Premier League, behind Genk, with a game in hand.