Kaizer Chiefs’ DR Congo-born striker Glody Lilepo was one of a few players that impressed in a very difficult season for the club.
Amakhosi finished ninth, missing out on the top eight spot and the MTN8 competition in the Betway Premiership.
Lilepo arrived at Naturena from the French side, Valenciennes, amid chaos and indifferent results, but he applied himself well, showed his quality, and endeared himself to the die-hard Chiefs supporters.
He made his debut against fierce opponents Orlando Pirates at the beginning of February, and since then, he has scored six goals in 19 games in all competitions, including the Nedbank Cup final triumph.
Preparations underway for new season
Chiefs are diligently preparing for the upcoming season in the Netherlands by participating in several friendly matches.
Tonight, they will face PEC Zwolle at the Sportpark Ezinge, in Meppel, at 7pm.
Even though results are not too consequential, Chiefs lost to Vitesse FC 2-1, 4-0 to FC Utrecht, and then 1-0 to NEC Nijmegen.
Coach Nasreddine Nabi will have had a good reading with regard to the squad that he will use when the new campaign gets underway.
According to the club’s website, Lilepo is looking forward to the upcoming second round of back-to-back games, again against two strong Dutch Eredivisie (Premiership) sides.
First up is PEC Zwolle on Tuesday, while Amakhosi will face FC Twente on Wednesday.
The Congolese attacker points out that the squad trained hard in the days before the back-to-back matches against Utrecht and Nijmegen.
Focus more on physical training
“We really played well in our last game,” said Lilepo, despite their 1-0 training fixture loss to Nijmegen.
“So far we have focused a lot on physical training, having two sessions a day. The physical aspect always comes before the tactical and technical aspects of the game,” he said.
“That’s typical pre-season. These two games are important, especially with the Toyota Cup coming up later this month.”
The Toyota Cup will be held in Durban on July 26 when the Glamour Boys host Ghana’s top side, Asante Kotoko, at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
“The preparations in Holland have been very positive. We are training hard to be ready for the upcoming season. Besides training hard, soccer is also about discipline, including tactical discipline. If you master that, you will succeed.
“If you want to challenge for trophies, one needs to have a stellar pre-season. It’s as simple as that. There is no other option.
“We are jelling nicely as a team, including the new players. I really feel positive looking ahead.”
