07 September 2018, by: Thathe Msimango

ARE KAISER CHIEFS FADING AS AN MZANSI FOOTBALL POWER HOUSE?

One of Mzansi’s soccer pioneers, Kaizer Chiefs, is failing dismally to hold onto its ‘giants’ stature in SA football. In the past three years, the club has failed to add to their significant trophy cabinet. Fans are left heartbroken and disappointed time after time; tainting their status and slowly losing their grip on the powerhouse tag.

The new man deployed to drive Kaizer Chiefs back to glory days, Giovanni Solinas, has had a terrible start to his tenure. Already, the fans patients have been tested while the seeds of anger and disappointment start to grow. Amakhosi have managed one win in all competitions under Solinas and recently crashed out of the MTN 8 Cup at the hands of Supersport United. This begs the question; is this season destined for another year of failure?

Kaizer Chiefs hired Steve Khomphela on the back of his historic season with Maritzburg United, where he took the Pietermaritzburg based club to a first-ever top-eight finish. However, his tenure ended in hostility and fans demanded a quick turnaround. South African football fanatics were left shocked when Amakhosi announced Giovanni Solinas as he wasn’t their first choice. Truth be told that Solinas doesn’t come with the same kind of history or a reputation as a Cup specialist. Is this move a recipe for disaster? What made the management take a gamble on Solinas?

In 2015, Stuart Baxter parted ways with Amakhosi after three stellar seasons and five trophies. The Glamour Boys to continued their trend of hiring international coaches, but the move for Solinas gets an all-round thumbs down at this stage. The results are visibly poor as they continue hanging under the dark cloud. Since Baxter’s departure, they have endured disastrous and frustrating seasons.

If you look at other teams over the years such as Mamelodi Sundowns, Bidvest Wits, and Supersport United, they have spent huge sums of cash to buy the best quality players in order to stay competitive. For example, SuperSport United have brought in a number of international players for hefty fees. The result? Four trophies in the last six years.

Many can point fingers to Chiefs without looking at how Mamelodi Sundowns, Bidvest Wits, and Supersport United have been splashing cash around to find the best quality players in order to stay competitive. United bought a lot of international players with the likes of Dean Furman and Mandla Masango who joined the Pretoria based outfit for hefty fees. The result? Four trophies in last six years for the club.

Kaizer Chiefs new additions, Khama Billiat and Lebogang Manyama, point in the right direction as management look to scrap and fight their way out of the footballing cesspit and back into the top. Patience may be wearing thin for the fans but every team goes through a phase like this. Will Chiefs fight back to being a fearless powerhouse in South African football or they follow the footsteps of the forgotten and formerly mighty Moroka Swallows? Only time will tell.