Bruce Bvuma of Kaizer Chiefs makes a save during their Betway Premiership clash against TS Galaxy at Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Saturday. Photo: BackpagePix
Image: Backpagepix
Kaizer Chiefs’ coach, Nasreddine Nabi, says their poor form has been due to bad luck, which has prevented them from performing at their best.
Chiefs’ struggles continued on Saturday night with a 1-1 draw against TS Galaxy in the Betway Premiership in Polokwane, leaving them in eighth place with 30 points — just one ahead of ninth-placed Chippa United, who have two games in hand.
This puts Chiefs in a precarious position, potentially finishing outside the Top 8 for a second consecutive season, which would be a blow for the team after appointing Nabi to rebuild and deliver results. Nabi, frustrated with the team's poor finishing, has suggested that bad luck is behind their inability to consolidate leads.
“We are going to take it game-by-game. The players did everything they could today to get a good result,” Nabi said.
“I feel that we are going through a moment of bad luck due to the lack of results. But we are going to hang in there — everyone has to push more and work harder. We are pretty sure that luck is going to come back, and we’ll see where we are at the end of the season.”
The next few weeks will be crucial in determining Chiefs' final league position and whether they can end their 10-year trophy drought. They will face Mamelodi Sundowns in the Nedbank Cup semi-final at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Sunday.
A victory would not only bring them closer to winning a trophy for the first time since 2015, but it could also secure a spot in the CAF Confederation Cup next season. However, Nabi knows they must eliminate mistakes and perform at their best to reach both their goals: finishing in the Top 8 and winning the Nedbank Cup.
Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nab and Dillan Solomons. Photo: BackpagePix
Image: Backpagepix
“We need to do it game-by-game. We have to be honest that it’s going to be very difficult — we have dropped points that we shouldn’t have,” he said. “But we are going to go game-by-game and see where we’ll finish in the league at the end of the season.”
Chiefs have been their own worst enemy this season, dropping points that should have been secured due to a lack of control in matches. They took the lead against the Rockets through Wandile Duba’s goal, but mistakes from Edmilson Dove and Given Msimango allowed Mlungisi Mbunjana to equalise.
Nabi said, “Even in the second half, when the opponent was pushing to come back, we still dominated and should have killed the game.
"But every time we don’t finish the game off, we keep the opponent alive. Unfortunately, they came back at a very tough time, so it’s very frustrating.”
Nabi may face more frustration against Sundowns, as he could be without his regular centre-backs, Inacio Miguel and Rushwin Dortley. The latter has been sidelined for some time with an injury, while Miguel was stretched off against Galaxy after a knock. Although Miguel tried to continue after medical attention, he struggled to finish the match, which led to Dove stepping in.
Nabi is not yet panicking about the potential absence of both centre-backs for Sunday’s clash in Pretoria, stating that he will wait for the medical report before making any decisions.
“We asked the player and the medical staff how he feels, and both of them said he could try. Unfortunately, he couldn’t, so he was substituted off,” Nabi explained.
“We’ll wait to see how he is doing and consult with our medical staff to see if he’ll be available for the next game on Sunday.”