The chance was not as easy as it looked – Ntshangase

Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Siphelele Ntshangase had fans wailing in disappointment when he opted try and find the pass when it looked like it would be easier for him to shoot for goal during Amakhosi’s 2-2 draw against Bloemfontein Celtic in an Absa Premiership match at FNB Stadium on Wednesday night.

With a few minutes left on the clock and the match tied at 2-2 Ntshangase had a great chance to steal the limelight and become Amakhosi’s hero when he found himself with the ball at his feet and unmarked inside the Celtic box. But he opted to try and find another player and lost possession.

Ntshangase has however revealed that the chance was not as easy as most saw it but promised he would work hard at training to improve on his handling of such situations.

“A lot happened in that situation. If you watched on TV you would ask ‘but why doesn’t he shoot from there?’ But there was a lot that happened before that. I am hoping that I will fix that at training,” he said. He later revealed that his first touch let him down and the ball didn’t land comfortably for him to be able to take a shot.

READ: Celtic hold Chiefs to a draw

Ntshangase has been playing well and looks to be getting his groove back and commands the Amakhosi midfield with some confidence.

“I think it has to do with confidence. The more you play, the more you become confident. When I am on the field I feel no pressure – I know what I must do. When we don’t have the ball I must help get it back and when we have it I must make the team play.” He said he was not entirely happy with his contribution so far.

“I am not really happy. I have two assists in five or six games. That is not normal for me. If I had made four assists in five games then I would say I am a little happier.

“I am enjoying the new role but adjusting was not easy. When the coach told me to play there it was a little difficult at first. I am now enjoying it because I can help in defending and attacking. I used the play the role in my amateur days.

“There is room for improvement. I need to keep the right positions in terms of the shape. We are working on it at training,” he said.

Like many Amakhosi fans, he disappointed with a draw when they could have so easily pocketed their first full points this season.

“If you look at it, we dominated up until the 78th minute where they got easy goals. We are all obviously disappointed.”

On having Leonardo Castro and Khama Billiat in the team, he said: “They make my job easier. Every time I have the ball either Castro or Billiat are open to receive the pass. That makes my job easier.”