Nkosingiphile Ngcobo of Kaizer Chiefs challenged by Sphelele Mkhulise of Mamelodi Sundowns during their recent league game. Picture: Samuel Shivambu, BackpagePix
Cape Town – Saturday’s 4-0 whitewash was a stark reminder that Kazier Chiefs, once the richest and most dominant club in Mzansi, are flailing about in Mamelodi Sundowns’ wake.
A few days ago, the reigning Premiership champions lost their air of invincibility when they were surprisingly defeated by TS Galaxy. At the same time, Chiefs defeated Maritzburg United 3-0 after they were gifted two of their three goals on a golden platter.
The two results fired up the country’s expectations and Saturday’s clash at Loftus Versfeld had the making of a blockbuster clash.
At least that’s what fans thought and by Friday the ‘sold out’ signs went up at Loftus Versveld.
As it turned out, the clash was an embarrassing defeat for Chiefs.
It stirred memories of last year’s shocking results when Chiefs plumbed the depths of despair after a humiliating 4-1 loss to Royal AM in a PSL match at their home ground, FNB Stadium.
A few months earlier, lower-tier side Richards Bay dumped Chiefs out of the Nedbank Cup.
Now, after three Premiership matches and a mere three points, it is time for the Naturena bigwigs to take stock when convening today in their boardroom meeting.
After getting on the scoresheet, Peter Shalulile & Abubeker Nasir reacted to the game and the performance against The Glamour boys in front of a full house at Loftus! 👆#Sundown #DStvPrem pic.twitter.com/u9v3oGcYAS
— Mamelodi Sundowns FC (@Masandawana) August 14, 2022
It may be an idea to consult with experts who know about operational excellence, and long-term thinking.
It may be true that there are problem areas off the pitch that they fail to see.
Earlier this year, Sundowns appointed Flemming Berg as the club’s head of elite football development and sporting director. He was part of Denmark’s national football team and helped to guide then from 46th to ninth in the Fifa world rankings in 2021.
He also served as sporting director at famous clubs in Europe and South America.
Berg oversees the performances of Sundowns’ coaches. He is responsible for the club’s recruitment drive and their latest signing, Ethiopia international Abubeker Nassir, looks like a massive gain on the evidence of his performance at Loftus on Saturday.
A few months prior to Berg’s appointment, Chiefs also made a sporting director appointment. The post went to Kaizer Motaung Jr – the son of Chiefs’ owner.
He is one of several Motaung family members who occupy key positions at the poorly performing club.
Motaung has no experience in the position, and it goes without saying that he’ll pick up experience at a price. Chiefs will be paying for that experience while the greenhorn occupies the post.
Gavin Hunt often gave the impression that even as head coach at Chiefs, he was not responsible for signings.
Occasionally, Hunt said he could not explain a player’s inclusion in the squad when he thought the player was not good enough to play for Chiefs.
When Chiefs next consider the problem, they need to look at those who are making important decisions like selecting a coach.
After all, those who made that call are the ones who should be held accountable.
One of them might be Motaung, and he has sensed the pending disaster judging by his call for fans to be patient with coach Arthur Zwane.
@Herman_Gibbs