"Al Shomooa gave him an offer he could not refuse. It was better than what Sundowns were offering." That one line from a source close to Olisa Ndah explains everything about why the Super Eagles defender is now headed to Libya rather than joining the most decorated club in South African football.
Ndah has signed a two-year deal with Al Shomooa SC, closing a five-year chapter in South African football that included 81 appearances and four trophies with Orlando Pirates, followed by a frustrating cameo at Stellenbosch where a work permit dispute held him to just seven matches before his contract quietly expired.
The Sundowns complication
Sundowns did their homework. They identified Ndah as a target and were apparently willing to wait — the plan was to hold off until the end of September, when the 28-year-old was expected to qualify for South African citizenship and sidestep the PSL's foreign player restrictions. A tidy solution, in theory.
But the financial offer attached to that patience wasn't good enough. "The offer from Sundowns was not great enough to require that kind of risk from him," the source said. And that's the crux of it — Ndah was being asked to gamble two or three months of his career on a citizenship timeline, for terms he didn't think justified the wait.
Al Shomooa removed the uncertainty entirely. A clean contract, better money, and an immediate start.
More than just the paycheck
To be fair to Ndah, this wasn't purely mercenary. Al Shomooa pitched him a sporting project built around competing for the Libyan title. The presence of Thembinkosi Lorch and a cluster of Nigerian players in the league gave it a familiar feel. For a defender who spent two difficult years navigating injuries and work permit headaches, continuity and clarity probably mattered as much as the salary.
From a Super Eagles perspective, the move carries risk. Eric Chelle's squad is competitive, and players based in lower-profile leagues tend to find themselves quietly dropped from contention. Ndah will need Al Shomooa to be the platform he believes it can be — not just a paycheck that keeps him off the radar.
"The offer from Sundowns was not great enough to require that kind of risk from him." Sundowns, for their part, will move on. They always do.
