We part way as friends - Baxter

“It has been a wonderful three year journey,” Stuart Baxter said after it was announced at a Kaizer Chiefs press conference on Tuesday that the coach won’t be at the Club next season.

“When Bobby Motaung and I met in London three years ago to discuss joining Chiefs,” Baxter reflected, “the critics were already sharpening their knives with some feeling that I did not do well with Bafana Bafana. However, the Chairman and Bobby showed courage and appointed me as the Club’s coach at the time.”

With a wry smile on his face, the Amakhosi coach added: “Hopefully, after having won two league titles and two cup trophies, a few perceptions about me have since changed.”

“We worked together for three years,” commented Baxter about his decision to leave the Amakhosi. “It’s always difficult when you get to a point to leave a club. Tensions drive football clubs to be successful. However, it costs a lot of energy and when you can’t do that anymore, it’s time to stand down. We have agreed that this is the best solution.”

“If there is one thing that I regret, it’s that, due to the timing of this announcement, I haven’t yet been able to sit down with the players. I would still like to talk to them.”

“There is a lot of speculation about the way forward,” the coach mentioned about his own future. “I travelled to Turkey last week to talk with a club. However, the bottom line is that I don’t have anything else at the moment.”

“We part ways as friends,” concluded Baxter, “and friends usually meet again at some stage in the future.”