In what was a rather bizarre press conference at the Chiefs Village, where statements were made and statistics revealed, Kaizer Chiefs co-coach Cedric Kaze took it upon himself to defend his team and their work with Khalil Ben Youssef so far this season.
Just moments before he could address the media ahead of their must-win league clash against Durban City on Sunday, given their recent poor run of form, Kaze did something unusual, as he walked in with two of his analysts, who had their laptops with them like men on a serious mission carrying heavy ammunition.
Kaze took his seat and went straight to the point to address the recent criticism and calls for him and Ben Youssef to be fired.
‘Stats don’t lie’
“I’m going to first do an evaluation of the 18 [league] games we’ve played – we’ve played 18 games, and to put it in context, I’m going to look at the last two seasons after games.
“In 2023/24, after 18 games, 12 goals conceded with seven losses, 25 points, in 10th position. In 2024/25, 24 goals conceded and eight losses, ninth with 24 points,” Kaze said, as he stood up and walked towards the screen, signalling to his analysts to start the slideshow.
“Today, four losses, 30 points. And I’m going to show you more stats for this season. Ball possession 59.4%, Mamelodi Sundowns is ahead of us; we are second.
“Accurate passes per game, we are second with 415 (overall). Total shots per game, we are first with an average of 15.5. Shots on target per game, average of 5.2, we are first.
“Successful dribbles per game, 9.5, we are first before Golden Arrows. Accurate crosses per game, we are third with an average of 4.5. Clean sheets, we are second. Those are stats of football.”
In a nutshell, Kaze was telling the Amakhosi fans, perhaps particularly those who have been calling for their head, that their statistics since taking over from Nasreddine Nabi in October last year, tell a different story from their recent poor results, where they failed to register a single shot on target in their loss to Richards Bay.
Redemption push
Amakhosi will now have an opportunity to redeem themselves in front of their fans on Sunday, where they will be going up against a Durban City side that is on form and recently qualified for the semifinals of the Nedbank Cup.
Chiefs are currently enduring a four-match winless run in all competitions, on top of being eliminated from the Nedbank Cup and the CAF Confederations Cup, including getting walloped 3-0 by fierce rivals Orlando Pirates in the Soweto Derby two weeks ago.
The Glamour Boys are sitting in sixth position on the league standings with 30 points and could leapfrog to number three if they win, also depending on the goal margin.
It must be mentioned that they also have two games in hand, and should they win both of them, they will be in a much better position than they are currently.
“There are still 12 games to play and a lot of things to play for! Today, we are in sixth position, and the one in third is three points ahead of us; we have two games in hand.
“I’m not saying that we’re going to win the two games, but we’re going to try everything we can. If this team finishes in third by the end of the season, as coach, I can even leave, and I will say that I have accomplished what no one has accomplished in the last 10 years.
“But at the end, if we achieve top three at the end of the season, we can leave and say we have done an incredible job,” he concluded.
