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By Sibongiseni Gumbi

Football Writer


Khune backs Ntseki to turn things around for Chiefs

"We are happy with the coach we have, and we will fully support him, which is what he deserves from us," says Khune.


Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper, Itumeleng Khune has publicly backed newly appointed coach Molefi Ntseki to be like the biblical Moses for the Naturena side.

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Khune, who is the captain of Chiefs, seems to be impressed by Ntseki’s work, whom he describes as “meticulous” in everything he does.

This once Bafana Bafana coach was installed in the Chiefs hot seat after the team failed to get the highly rated Nassredine Nabi.

Ntseki’s appointment did not go down well with some fans who saw him as unfit for the job, but Khune sees it differently.

Ntseki has been preparing the team for the 2023/24 DStv Premiership season. The former Bafana Bafana coach and his team are currently in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania where they will play Young Africans SC in a friendly match on Saturday at 6pm.

There is no doubt about the weight of the burden of turning things around at Chiefs on Ntseki’s shoulders after the eight-year drought at Naturena.

“There were rumours that (Mohammed Nassredine Nabi) is coming to Kaizer Chiefs, I don’t know what happened to him,” Itumeleng Khune said during a media briefing ahead of the game.

“But we have a new coach (Ntseki) now so we are looking forward to the game. I heard about it (Nabi’s rumours), I read about it, but things did not happen as reported.

“But we are happy with the coach we have, and we will fully support him, which is what he deserves from us.”

Ntseki will be showing his hand publicly for the first time in this game as it will also be shown on television. The game is live on SuperSport 5.

It is not an easy game because Young Africans will use it to test themselves to see at what level they are in terms of preparations for the season.

Yanga is a big test for Ntseki’s acumen

Yanga invite big teams from other countries because it is part of its celebrations, and is used to introduce new players to their fans.

It is expected that the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, where this game will be played, will be packed because it is an eagerly awaited game.

After that, Chiefs will go to Botswana where they will play against Township Rollers in another friendly match on July 29.

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After that, they will return home to finish their preparations and then on Saturday August 6 they will face Chippa United in their first match of the DStv Premiership.