Posted in Features, News on Dec 31, 2017.
It has been a difficult journey in 2017. We were hoping that with coach Steve Komphela now in his third season that more positive results would be forthcoming, but that hasn’t happened as yet.
We have now gone 2.5 years without winning a trophy and that’s disappointing. But we won’t throw in the towel. There are no shortcuts and the margins between the different teams are small, but there is still a lot to play for – the Absa Premiership and the Nedbank Cup.
I do believe, however, that we can look forward to a better future and I am confident that we are on the right track. This optimism also has to do with the changes we want to implement in the New Year.
It was great to see that a few youngsters have come through from our development structures, including Siyabonga Ngezana, Wiseman Meyiwa, Khotso Malope, Bruce Bvuma and Nkosingiphile Ngcobo.
It means that our vision for the youth development structures is right on track. We plan to further enhance our youth academy, which is a good investment for the future.
We also acquired some young players like Dumsani Zuma and Teenage Hadebe. It all bodes well for the future.
Meanwhile, some of the older guys, who have done tremendously well for Kaizer Chiefs in recent years, are slowing down and we need replacements for them over a period of time.
An example is the signing of the Colombian Leonardo Castro on the brink of 2018. He’s a good acquisition and the striker will make a significant impact on our attacking department, where we haven’t done so well. Scoring goals, however, is not only preserved for strikers in modern football.
On a sad note, we lost this year our beloved goalkeeper coach Alexandre ‘Alex’ Revoredo after a short illness. Alex was loved by everyone who came into contact with him, from players to colleagues and from management to supporters. We still miss his humour, his hugs and his positive attitude.
I also want to mention in particularly our supporters, who have been good to us, especially when we played our home games in KwaZulu-Natal. They deserve more from us. Thank you for always being there to uplift our team.
The strength of Kaizer Chiefs is our supporters and we owe all the success we achieve to them.
We not only had a difficult journey as a club in 2017, but South Africa as a whole went through tough times as well.
I therefore hope that 2018 will bring a ray of hope for a much improved year for both Kaizer Chiefs and the country.
We would like to wish our supporters and their families all the best for the New Year and that they may come home safe from their various destinations.
Let’s move forward with renewed vigour on this continuing journey in 2018.