Glody Lilepo's Instagram Drama: Kaizer Chiefs Fans Relieved
For a few anxious hours on Sunday, Kaizer Chiefs supporters braced themselves for another emotional farewell.
Glody Makabi Lilepo, one of the pillars of the club’s recent revival, dropped two short, sharp Instagram stories: “leaving bye” and “bye bye”. No explanation. No context. Just those words, one post featuring goalkeeper coach Ilyes Mzoughi, the other showing Bruce Bvuma.
In a fan base still scarred by high-profile exits and years of instability, that was more than enough to set off alarms. Was the Congolese winger saying goodbye to teammates? Was this the start of another drawn-out transfer saga?
The speculation spread quickly. The reality, though, is far calmer.
Contract says “stay”, not “go”
Despite the social media noise, there is no indication from inside Naturena that Lilepo is on his way out.
He remains firmly under contract at Chiefs, having signed a two-and-a-half-year deal in January 2025 when he arrived as Nasreddine Nabi’s first signing of that transfer window. Built into that agreement is an option for an extra season, which keeps Chiefs in full control of his immediate future.
He has a year left on his current deal, which runs to June 2027, and the club can extend it to June 2028 if they choose to trigger the option. That is not the profile of a player being quietly ushered towards the exit.
Club sources are clear: Amakhosi are not entertaining offers for Makabi Lilepo. They have not received any concrete bids. They are not shopping him around.
The Instagram posts may have stirred the pot. The contract situation slams the lid back on.
From new signing to driving force
The fuss around a disappearing Instagram story – shared in a format that vanishes after 24 hours – underlines just how important Lilepo has become in a short space of time.
In just 18 months, the DR Congo international has grown into one of the most influential figures at Chiefs. He is no longer just “Nabi’s first signing”; he is a central piece of the club’s rebuilding puzzle.
The numbers back it up. Since touching down at Naturena, Lilepo has scored 15 goals, supplied five assists and featured in 56 matches. Those are not cameo contributions. Those are the figures of a player trusted to carry responsibility week after week.
He helped drag Chiefs out of a decade-long trophy drought, playing his part in the 2025 Nedbank Cup triumph over their fiercest rivals in the final. That win did more than add silverware to the cabinet. It reset the mood around the club, and Lilepo was right in the middle of it.
This season, he again stood up. Chiefs finished third in the league, their best campaign in years, with Lilepo a key driver in attack. That position brings them back into the MTN8 after a two-season absence and books their place in the CAF Confederation Cup.
For a club trying to re-establish itself among the continent’s serious operators, keeping that kind of player is non-negotiable.
A storm in an Instagram story?
So why the “leaving bye” drama?
Only Lilepo knows the full intention behind those posts. They may have been aimed at specific individuals, a private joke, or a moment of frustration. What they did achieve, without doubt, was to expose just how sensitive Chiefs fans are to any hint of upheaval around their key performers.
In an era where a disappearing story can create a full-blown transfer rumour, Chiefs have at least one advantage: the paperwork is on their side, and the internal stance is firm. Lilepo is central to the project, not a name on the market.
The winger’s posts have vanished, as stories do. The questions they raised will linger a little longer.
But unless something dramatic changes, the next time Glody Makabi Lilepo says goodbye, it is far more likely to be to a defender left trailing in his wake than to Kaizer Chiefs.
