On the vibe in Amakhosi’s camp:

The vibe in the camp is good. We were a bit concerned that after the international break that the momentum might shift a little bit maybe. That the players coming back from the national team are not all switched on. It’s a concern all coaches have, but even when we go to Maritzburg, there’s a one and a half hour delay, and we had to do three different types of warmups and organise food for the players in the dressing room, even with that we still put in a good performance, a solid performance and I think the players are now wanting to pick up that momentum again.

On managing a busy fixture schedule:

Now we have the challenge of three games in a very short space of time. So, there will be a little bit of rotation I am supposing, and it will be a question of making sure the team retains a bit of balance, even though you’re making changes.

On the perception that Chiefs are an overly ‘defensive’ team playing with seven defenders:

There’s no other team in the league that has had more strikes on goal. We’re the team in the league that have two of the top goalscorers in the league and we have the team in the league that has created the most chances of anybody. So, I have no idea where the noise comes from and I don’t even know who the seven defenders are to be quite honest. We’ve got attacking fullbacks, we’ve got two centre-backs and we’ve got Njabulo Ngcobo, who can play centre-back, in midfield. Apart from that I don’t know where the other seven come from.

On the Chiefs current process:

When I came in, I realised very quickly the way society has changed, and the way football has evolved. And how the league has evened out. It wasn’t going to be an overnight fix. So, I think the players reacted very well. The strategy of the team had to then come in synch with the strategy of the club in other areas. Then we have to get in line the sort of football the supporters will enjoy Kaizer Chiefs playing. We’ve made a very good start to that. The fact that there has been a few blips along the way is not surprising at all. So I think where we are at the moment and the football that we’ve shown glimpses of, if we can get the consistency and we’re starting to put that together with a little bit more controlling of critical phases of the game then I think we’ve got a recipe that can be very interesting.

On facing AmaZulu:

AmaZulu are one of the top teams, one of the best teams we’ve played this year. I think Benni’s done a good job with them. They are an aggressive, well organised team. I’ve watched all of their games and I don’t think anybody has had an easy ride against them and they are a constant threat and they keep going. I thought we played well against them down there to get a draw and we’re going to have to play very well against them here to get a win. But we feel we are in a decent space. If we can go again in these conditions of many games in a short time, if we can achieve a little bit more consistency, I think we’ve got enough in our armoury to give them a problem.

On making inroads up the league table:

It matters at the end of the season. What matters now is that we continue to have that momentum and that we get more consistency in our performances. If we win the game tomorrow and play dreadfully and we get lucky, and we keep on doing that, it’s only a question of time before we tread on a landmine and we will dip very rapidly. I want us to perform well and let the result come on the back of that performance. If we perform very well and unluckily lose the game, it’s only a matter of time before we pick up points again. The performance is very important at this time of the year for me and the way the boys are and the club and its development. Are we evolving in the right direction?