Johannesburg - Arthur Zwane is hellbent on helping Kaizer Chiefs write new chapters going forward, instead of focusing on their previous fortunes.
Having amassed 93 trophies in their first 46 years of existence, Chiefs were expected to grow in leaps and bounds, but they have been on a downward spiral, enduring a seven-year trophy drought despite continuous investment in the club.
Enter Zwane. The Amakhosi legend has his work cut out for him as he must ensure that his troops find the club’s identity and win silverware as well.
“We don’t want to focus on the past. It’s gone. We must look at what it is that we can do now and help the team to improve,” the 49-year-old said.
“It’s not about the history of the club now. But we have to look at what we can do to change the fortunes of the club and start winning cups again.”
Zwane took the Chiefs job knowing that he had to develop a thick skin and convince their demanding club’s fanbase that Rome wasn’t built in a day.
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But Zwane understands that he’s under pressure to deliver trophies.
“There’s pressure at working for a team of Chiefs’ calibre because the people expect results week-in and week-out. It has never been easy,” Zwane said.
Zwane, though, can still save Chiefs’ season by finishing second in the league - as they’d qualify for the CAF Champions League - and winning the Nedbank Cup.
Chiefs are fourth on the log with 28 points after 19 games, while they’ll begin their Nedbank Cup campaign away to Maritzburg United on Friday night.
But to achieve those targets, Chiefs have to ensure that they win games on a consistent basis.
“I think we’ve been unfortunate when it comes to injuries and consistency because when we go to the third game we’ll lose a key player,” Zwane said.
“It is a worrying factor that we haven’t been consistent. And sometimes, it looks as if we don’t know what we are doing in terms of our starting line-up.
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“And that’s because we had either lost two players in one game and recently Caleb (Bimenyimana), while Keagan (Dolly) was out in the other game as well.
“We started well, but we lost games because we lost some key players. But that has been the story of our season. And we can’t focus on that as a team.”
Chiefs, importantly, must be consistent in the Nedbank
Cup considering it’s a knockout competition. Zwane says they’ll work on the players’ mindset.
“(We have to work on) the mindset – nothing much. Our players know what’s at stake and how important it is for us to go to the next stage,” Zwane said.
Maritzburg will be a tough opponent for Chiefs after winning three games, drawing one and losing one since the return of coach Fadlu Davids this year.
Zwane, though, says they’ll do everything to win the game and progress to the next round despite losing key players to injuries.
“They are a good team, there’s no doubt about that. But we are going there to dig deeper and make sure we progress to the next round,” Zwane said.
@MihlaliBaleka