Has Middendorp developed a ‘small team mentality’ and applied it at Chiefs?

What is this guy on about, I hear you ask yourself. Okay, let me start from the beginning. In South African football we have big teams. There are the original “Big Three” who get that title because of the huge following they attract wherever they play across the country – that’s Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns, in no particular order.

You can then add Bidvest Wits and SuperSport United to that list because of their achievements in recent years which makes them feared sides in local football. They have also proved that they can compete with the Big Three in terms of attracting quality players or big-name players, as it were.

Now, whenever, let’s say Baroka, play against one of these teams, you know they will give their best performance because the players want to prove themselves against the top names in these big teams, and also to try and win a move there.

That is why the big headline from last weekend’s football action was Amakhosi’s loss to AmaZulu, even though Sundowns’ quarter-finals defeat in the Caf Champion League was a more serious issue.

This is what got me thinking that perhaps coach Ernst Middendorp has brought what I will call “small team mentality” to Amakhosi. I say this based on how Chiefs have managed to play their hearts out in big matches since the return of the German mentor. They are yet to lose against Pirates and Sundowns. And just over a fortnight ago, they were expected to struggle against the Buccaneers’ well-oiled machine. But, even though their performance was not easy on the eye, they gave a gallant display and won the match, leaving even some of their fans wondering how. They performed what is called a “smash and grab” on Josef Zinnbauer’s side only to go and lose to an AmaZulu side who had so many problems going to the match.

They have also been performing in a way unexpected of a big team, with their system reliant on counter-attacks and set plays even in games against smaller opposition. There is no pride and arrogance expected of a big team in their displays.

Middendorp has spent I’d estimate 80% of his coaching career at small teams where avoiding relegation was the expected achievement. That is why he is very thorough when it comes to his analysis of opposition – that’s what small teams do… study opposition thoroughly and counter them to try and steal points off them. They hardly worry about their own display. That’s what’s happened at Chiefs this season.

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