'It was a critical situation and we were not sure if they would play,' said the Chiefs co-head coach.
Kaizer Chiefs co-head coach Khalil Ben Youssef says a stomach bug affected some Amakhosi players ahead of their Caf Confederation Cup goalless draw at AS Simba in Lubumbashi on Saturday afternoon.
ALSO READ: Chiefs earn hard fought draw at Simba
Chiefs will now play Simba this Saturday at Dobsonville Stadium, with all to play for in the second leg of their final qualifier for the group stages of the Confederation Cup.
Chiefs players were ‘ready to fight’
“Five players yesterday had diarrhea,” Ben Youssef told the Chiefs media team.
“It was a critical situation and we were not sure if they would play. Congratulations to them, they were not 100 percent, but they were ready to fight for the team.”
Ben Youssef added that it was impossible to play passing football on the playing surface at the TP Mazembe Stadium in Lubumbashi.
“With the situation of the pitch and the temperature, we prepared the players for this situation,” he said.
“This was a pitch you can’t play on so we played long balls like them (Simba).
“Our plan was to manage the first 45 minutes and not concede. Then we knew the opponent would take a lot of risks, press higher and leave us space. So we introduced (Mduduzi) Shabalala, Ashley (Du Preez) and (Wandile) Dubal, to give us speed.
“In the first half we had two opportunities to score and one hit the crossbar from (Khanyisa) Mayo. In the 88th minute there was a good combination between (Mfundo) Vilakazi and Shabalala, who passed to Ashley and he was unlucky.”
Ben Youssef also said that they could not start Vilakazi and Shabalala because of their recent return from international duty. Vilakazi was with Amajita at the Fifa Under-20 World Cup in Chile, while Shabalala was with the Bafana side that qualified for the 2026 Fifa World Cup.
“We discussed their physical situation with both,” he said.
Siwelele up next
“Vilakazi after the World Cup had only a week of training and a long flight back from Chile. Shabalala was with Bafana for ten days. Congratulations to them for qualifying for the World Cup.
“They didn’t start the game, they weren’t ready but we prepared for both to come on in the second half.”
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Before the second leg, Chiefs will host Siwelele on Wednesday at FNB Stadium in the Betway Premiership. Amakhosi could be without winger Glody Lilepo for that game after he had to come off injured against Simba.
