Kaizer Chiefs started the New Year with ample reason to believe that they could close in on Premiership leaders and defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns.
But with their poor run of results in 2023 they are now concentrating on qualifying for one of the continental competitions at the end of the season as they are 25 points behind Sundowns, who have won 13 games on the trot.
Amakhosi, though, are not hating on Sundowns for their winning run. Instead, Yusuf Maart - one of the players who was expected to get them to click this season - bemoans their lack of luck in the final third.
“You can’t take away what they (Sundowns) have. They’ve been winning, and we’ve also been trying to but our luck hasn’t been there since the start,” Maart said.
“But maybe it’s something that we need to work on as a team. If they run away with the league, then that’s that. There’s nothing we can do about it.”
Chiefs’ woes have not been limited to their attack as they are also conceding goals through silly mistakes at the back, resulting in three defeats to start the year.
“The year didn’t start well for us and (me) personally. We are getting chances and everything, but we can’t score due to being unlucky,” Maart said.
Arthur Zwane’s team also recently lost their midfield rock when Njabulo Blom moved to the United States and 21-year-old Samkelo Zwane has struggled to fill the boots of the Bafana Bafana ace.
“We are happy for Blom, for where he is today. But, we must go on with the plan. Samkelo is there, and we are helping him to adapt,” Maart said.
“But like I said, luck is not there. As you can see, we are getting a lot of chances in the game ... the ball simply can’t go into the back of the net.”
In a bid to fix their scoring woes, Chiefs recently signed lanky striker Christian Basomboli from Nchanga Rangers in Zambia on a three-and-a-half-year deal.
The 22-year-old first arrived at Chiefs last year on trial and was given the No 21 jersey at his unveiling on Wednesday.
Whether or not Basomboli will be available for selection against Royal AM on Sunday is still unknown. But Zwane says Basomboli is a goal machine.
“We obviously profiled him and he’s a scoring machine,” Zwane said. “He’s been scoring goals for his previous team and we want him to do the same here.”
Chiefs will host Royal AM at Peter Mokaba Stadium hoping that their second home ground could yield a positive result against Shauwn Mkhize’s club this term, as last season’s rookies have won all three of their games against Chiefs since they joined the top flight.
Another loss will only add to the woes at Chiefs.
IOL Sport