There’s no structure nor identity at Chiefs, says Shabba

Kaizer Chiefs legend Siphiwe “Shabba” Tshabalala has given his views on why youngsters are not doing well at Amakhosi compared to Orlando Pirates.

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While Kelebohile Mofokeng has been doing wonders at the Buccaneers this season, the likes of Mduduzi Tshabalala and Wandile Duba have struggled to stake their claim in the Amakhosi starting 11.

Speaking to iDiski Times, Tshabalala has given his reasons why Chiefs youngsters are not doing as well as Mofokeng at Pirates.

“Conversation is key mostly with young players,” Tshabalala told iDiski Times.

“I’ll give examples, Mofokeng is playing well, and is a regular, he’s getting game time, which is good for him, good for football [in the country]. And he looks like he’s in an environment where he’s being guided, where he’s being mentored and also being protected.

“And now he’s at a level where he can be thrown into the deep end. You can only improve when you play, you cannot improve on the bench and when you’re not a regular.”

“With Chiefs it’s a bit different now because of the situation. I said it before, there are good players at Chiefs, the club doesn’t have bad players, the challenge is that they don’t have a team. There’s no structure currently, there’s no identity, it looks more reliant on individual brilliance [to win games] more than a team structure and it becomes a problem for the youngsters when they are promoted to the first team, because they come into an environment where the team is not doing well, not winning,” commented the former Bafana Bafana winger.

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Tshabalala added that part of the reasons why youngsters are not doing well at Chief is because the club has no structure or identity.

“And now when they are being introduced as well, they get lost because there’s no structure or identity, they don’t even know what patterns of play, style of play. So when they play, they’re [doing] things relying on their talent, rather than the structure of the team. They come into a tough environment, with pressure, a lot of criticism, so that’s where mentorship is required, a lot of conversations are needed to prepare them, keep them grounded and also to let them know they are good players, they are capable of being great players,” concluded Tshabalala.