Beleaguered Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi has made his festive season wish, and let's hope the Amakhosi pay attention and act before the year runs out.
The Tunisian-born mentor cut a frustrated figure after Ranga Chivaviro's injury-time goal in Monday's clash against TS Galaxy allowed Chiefs to salvage a share of the spoils in a 1-all stalemate. Chiefs had dominated the match, managing 11 shots at goal, but only one was on target.
Apart from the dire need for a goal scorer, Nabi wants to improve the squad.
“The perfect gift for Christmas will be players that can strengthen the team,” said Nabi.
“Again, we are missing opportunities to score. In the end, we tried everything to put more power and more risk up-front. Fortunately, we got the point. But we feel that we are very far from the level of a team like Kaizer Chiefs.
“We need to work hard and strengthen the team. We’re going to do everything we can for the future games."
Nabi will be looking for players who can offer Chiefs variety, in the hope of improving results starting with the next match against Chippa United on the Sunday at the end of the month, at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, in Durban.
“It is true that we feel that at the top (in the forward line) we have the same kind of players. They like to dribble and play in short spaces, but we lack a bit of power," said Nabi. “We lack players who can shoot and make decisions. We need to get those kinds of players in the future."
Chiefs are currently in ninth place on the Betway Premiership standings, with 12 points from their nine matches. They have only won once in their last five league games.
Although Nabi has mentioned the need for reinforcements in attack, Chiefs' defence has leaked 13 goals — the most by any team this season. On top of that, Chiefs are the only team not to come away with a clean sheet this season.
“Yes, I think in the past games we conceded too many goals. I want to get more balance in the midfield and play with three defenders, two box-to-box midfielders and a number six scanning the play," said Nabi.
"I haven’t had enough time with the players, and they don't exactly understand the 4-3-3 system. It meant we had no balance and were making too many mistakes."
Nabi has not lost heart after the team’s disappointing results of late and is determined to see an improvement.
“I have come here and accepted a big responsibility. I won’t change because it's not only my process; the process is a project for Kaizer Chiefs,” said Nabi. “We’ll continue with our process and targets and won’t change.”
Galaxy has proved to be a hoodoo side for Chiefs. Against all odds, Galaxy, a First Division side at the time, defeated Chiefs in the 2019 Nedbank Cup final. In 11 matches between the two sides, Chiefs enjoy a solitary win and seven draws. | Independent Media Sport