…BA awaits Chiefs on tenterhooks
JOHANNESBURG – Many football pundits have concluded, and rightly so, that South African glamour football club Kaizer Chiefs’ imminent visit to Namibia for their preliminary match in the Orange Confederation of African Football (CAF) clash against Black Africa is just a mere formality.
Chiefs take a comfortable 3-0 lead going into the decisive final leg against the Namibian champions at the Independence Stadium on Saturday, but BA’s wily mentor Brian Isaacs is having none of that and believes his relatively inexperienced squad will put up an improved showing on home soil after being outplayed and completely out-thought in last weekend’s first leg clash in Johannesburg.
“We tried our level best but the gulf, quality wise, experience and exposure is hopelessly too wide to say the least. In all honesty, in the encounter with Chiefs we were exposed to a high level of competition, but our boys showed potential in some areas of their game.
“This match was a real eye-opener for us, it also gave us a clue about what to expect in the return leg at home. We are going to work out a few things and see how it goes,” said Isaacs at the post-match press briefing at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday evening. Chiefs Head Coach, Stuart Baxter voiced his displeasure at the numerous goal-scoring chances that went begging, but was nevertheless happy with the overall result.
“First step, we went into the match not knowing much about our opponents and the format the game would take, so it took my players time to settle on our attacking innovation.”
Baxter dismissed suggestions that his decision to rest some of his key players was a sign of underestimating the opposition.
“We have crucial marathon matches coming up in the PSL and this situation obliged us to safe some tired legs and subsequently give vital minutes on the pitch to some of the fringe players.”
The goatee bearded Chiefs mentor added that the result gifted the Amakhosi the assurance to go to Namibia with more confidence, but he was quick to caution his players against complacency, adding that anything can happen in football.
“Success is like licking honey from a sword,” concluded Baxter to loud laughter from the large contingent of sports scribes gathered at the giant FNB Stadium near Soweto, Johannesburg following the one-sided match.
By Carlos Kambaekwa