First let me introduce my column, which will serve as a platform to keep you informed about what is happening in the camp. This will be a monthly column and the reason for that is simple - our focus should be more on the field of play and not talking all the time.

I have now been with the club for over two weeks at training and if you ask my impression so far - well, not very impressed. The reason for that is that the power is not there. At the moment we are in the process where we have to put the power, the speed and the agility back into the team. Playing football with skills only, you won’t achieve anything.

We have to provide a solid foundation for success taking into account that most teams will regard their matches against Kaizer Chiefs as the final. In order to gain that power, speed and agility, we go to the gym twice a week. I have just received an injury report from last season and we had 21 heavy injuries, and that is a lot. What it simply means is that certain parts of the body strength are not developed very well. And if we carry on like that we could end up with 30 heavy injuries.

Youth Focus

There are a few challenges around this area which need to be sorted out. I believe nobody has to be in a comfort zone. The name and the brand of this club, is bigger than any individual. Anybody who wears the Chiefs jersey must be happy to be part of the club. For me the most important thing is to secure the brand, that is why I came back and I will do everything for that.

It might take three months, six months or even one year, I don’t know but one thing I can promise is that we will get this team back on track.

When it comes to youth development and promotion, it was not only at Ajax that I put emphasis on the youth. It was the same with Kaizer Chiefs before, at Trabzonspor, the Zaire national team, also with Ismaili and Club Africaine. The question was always that management and the supporters had to be patient.

In the long term and middle term, you have to introduce these youngsters because it is vital for the future and this country has talent.

Squad size

I have been in professional football for more than 20 years now and it’s very interesting that some coaches can work with 40 players. I still have to go to school to learn how they manage to work with and manage such a big squad. I cannot manage at the moment 30 because it is not possible. If you go to Europe you will have 22 players and three goalkeepers.

If you have a strong reverse team and a solid under-17, it’s not necessary to work with a big number.

Yes we are going to make a few signings to reinforce our squad. We have a goalkeeper who has been training with us and I am very impressed. There is also another youngster we got from the Vodacom League - a future player not only for Kaizer Chiefs but also for the country. I think management is waiting for the right time before making the announcement on the new players.

We will be playing Black Leopards in a friendly match on July 15 and everybody is excited about that. This is another important part of our pre-season preparations. The most important aspect for us is to find the right combinations with what we have. As I always say, you must have more suites that you can wear not only one. That means our system has to be flexible.

At this stage of pre-season, results are not that important to me because I have to find the right combinations for the toughest situations. And our supporters must understand that pre-season is that - pre-season and results count for little. I’d rather we get hammered in pre-season and that will open my eyes in certain ways. Most important for us is when the league starts on August 15 in our first game against Benoni United, there we have to get the points in the bank.

Now we have an interesting situation in January/February as our campaign is going to be interrupted due to the Nations Cup. You will remember that’s how we lost the league by one point after having six players in the national team. When we stopped play, we were comfortably leading the log and when we resumed play, we were eighth on the log.

Getting back it was not easy to regain our rhythm and lost points in the six matches because of draws. Imagine the points we lost there and in the end we lost it by one point. I think we can learn from the situation in Egypt. When Al Ahly play in the Champions League ore even the national team, everybody waits for them.

Yes that situation will affect us but we are in a rebuilding process. The team finished ninth last season and the team played really awful in the last couple of months before the end of the season. We have to get that excitement and the power back and the results will follow.

And finally, I have heard all the reports and rumours linking Jose Torrealba to us. Well, that’s news to me. No doubt he is a great player but there are no plans for us to sign him at the moment.

Love and Peace!

Muhsin Ertugral


Kaizer Chiefs Head Coach