OPINION: Chiefs’ Nabi is skating on thin ice after red card

Not so long ago, I questioned Nasreddine Nabi’s plan for the Kaizer Chiefs project, or lack thereof. It’s becoming more evident that he’s huffing and puffing his way to nothing. So much was promised when he first arrived, but it looks like his bark is stronger than his bite.

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Nabi’s complaining is ill-advised

Nabi’s misguided obsession with blaming everything on match officials rather than improving his team will ultimately lead to his downfall. Remonstrating with referee Olani Kwinda long after the final whistle was blown in the 1-0 defeat to Golden Arrows was ill-advised. 

Kwinda was left with no option but to brandish a red card. This is unbecoming of the Chiefs coach and he will get himself into more trouble if this kind of behaviour continues. The Tunisian’s actions can only be interpreted as a desperate ploy to deflect from his own shortcomings as a coach. Surely management at the Soweto giants can’t be happy with Nabi’s conduct.

It’s not the first time that the nomadic coach has vented his frustration at referees. He did the same thing during a home game to Mamelodi Sundowns earlier in the season. It seems as if this is part of his character and unfortunately, that is not going to win him favour with the fans or the club’s hierarchy. 

Chiefs are still a sleeping giant

At the rate things are going, I can safely put my head on the block to say that the former Young Africans and AS FAR coach will fail dismally at awakening the sleeping giant that is Chiefs. It’s easier to make a case for someone who has a clear football philosophy. So far, I haven’t seen anything to write home about since his appointment last July.

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Surely, he can’t still be figuring things out six months into the job. For example, Nabi doesn’t have a clue who his number-one goalkeeper is. He has rotated Fiacre Ntwari, Brandon Peterson and Bruce Bavuma. Maybe that explains why his team has conceded 16 goals in 13 matches. I’m loathe to state the obvious, but results need to drastically improve, or his days of blaming referees are numbered.