Relief for Cedric Kaze after shoot-out victory for Kaizer Chiefs breaks winless slump

Kaizer Chiefs’ co-interim coach Cedric Kaze cut an animated figure during the team’s progression into the second round of the CAF Confederation Cup preliminary qualifiers on Saturday afternoon. Goldy Lilepo scored the only goal of the match against Kabuscorp in the second leg of the first-round qualifiers as Chiefs levelled the tie before winning 5-4 on penalties at FNB Stadium.

The goal and the club's progression meant a lot to the technical team and players, as they went into the game low on confidence following a loss to Sekhukhune and a draw with Kabuscorp away.

So, Kaze didn’t take the goal calmly. He celebrated in delight, moving behind the dugout to rally the fans. His decision was understandable — Chiefs needed a lot of celebration, especially amid the difficult period that has befallen the club following the departure of coach Nasreddine Nabi.

The Tunisia-born coach is reportedly on his way out of the club, having recently been suspended by the club due to issues of mistrust and licensing. And that’s why Kaze and Khalil Ben Youssef are holding the fort on an interim basis.

The duo's tenure didn’t go according to plan initially. They had lost to Kabuscorp in the first leg away from home and drew with Marumo Gallants in the Betway Premiership on Wednesday night.

The change of events on Saturday afternoon has brought a sigh of relief to the team as they can put all their focus on the league clash against AmaZulu on Wednesday night at home. “We have to be honest — it’s a relief that we are onto the next round,” Kaze said. “We have to create that positive momentum in the minds of the players now. The training is going to be more light. The mood is going to be lighter than the previous days. But we still need to keep the momentum going into our next game against AmaZulu on Wednesday.”

While Chiefs may be heading into the next game on Wednesday night high on confidence, their attacking department has left a lot to be desired. Since scoring two goals in the opening game against Stellenbosch, Chiefs are yet to score more than one goal to date. Kaze understands that their struggle in front of goal does not paint a good image of the team, but he’s called for calm heads especially with more players exiting the medical room.

“I would say that situations are different,” Kaze argued. “In the previous games, the last pass and movement were not quite good. I have to say that today the chances were there, and the last passes were there.

The only thing that we have to do is to keep working. The good thing is that we are going into the next games with more players, and options that will be available. So we hope that’s going to help as well.”

One of the players who’s expected to be soon available for selection is Etiosa Ighodaro. The striker, who arrived at the club during the winter transfer window, got injured at training. And he’s been working his way back into full recovery.

Kaze confirmed that it’s just a matter of time before he’s available for selection, which is why he hopes that the upcoming FIFA break will help the players who’ll still be working hard to push the players who are ahead of them.

“Ighodaro has been injured, but the medical department promised us (that he’ll get better soon),” Kaze revealed. “He started training this week without contact. But we hope that after the international break, he’ll be ready to go.”