It’s time for Chiefs to pay the piper
The prolonged trophy-less run has made supporters question the players' commitment.
Willard Katsande of Kaizer Chiefs (Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix)
Training is something footballers normally look forward to, but Willard Katsande revealed that at Kaizer Chiefs that has changed lately, as they feel a certain degree of anxiety about the side’s downward spiral.
It is easy to see that Chiefs’ slump in the past few years weighs heavily on Katsande’s shoulders as one of the senior players.
The prolonged trophy-less run has made supporters question the players’ commitment and Katsande – who has always been seen as a hard worker – has not been spared.
He is, however, realistic enough to understand why fans are unhappy and knows what is needed.
READ: Chiefs coach feeling the heat ahead of Cup final
Speaking to the media this week, he admitted that these days even a simple task like going to refuel a car is no longer enjoyable, as they are likely to have to answer difficult questions about the club’s shameful situation.
“We need to remove the darkness of this trophy drought,” he said.
A chance for that comes tomorrow when they meet National First Division (NFD) side TS Galaxy in the Nedbank Cup final at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban.
“We know it will be difficult and we are not undermining them at all. We know their strengths and we are working hard to ensure we can neutralise them. We know their weaknesses and are working on exploiting that.”
READ: We will have to keep calm against TS Galaxy – Katsande
Katsande knows the hard-to-please Amakhosi fans will want a fluid performance, but victory has to be the priority.
“They [TS Galaxy] like having the ball and for me they can have it. All we want is the win and the trophy…
“They may be excited to be in the final and have done well in their league but we will be like businessmen and we will do the business.
“I don’t know how we are going to win it but we are going to do it,” he said sternly.
“We have been given a chance to come here and do what we like every day.
“The enjoyment is there but we need to have the right mentality – the winning mentality.
“When we get to Saturday, whatever we did at training will determine the result. We have to execute the plan well.”
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