The Kaizer Chiefs African tour is up to speed and began with a narrow 1-0 defeat to Young Africans SC at a sold-out Benjamin Mkapa stadium, Dar es Salaam, in Tanzania on Saturday.
The high-profile friendly match is an annual event for Yanga, as they officially unveil their new kit and signings of the season in front of their fans.
Amongst the new signings is skilful midfielder Mahlatse Makudubela, who joined the Tanzanian giants from relegated Marumo Gallants.
Chiefs’ starting line-up saw six of their new recruits make their unofficial debuts, with striker Ranga Chivaviro being the only absentee after being confirmed by the club few minutes before the game to be unfit for the encounter.
It was a relatively even first half, with neither side creating enough clear-cut goal scoring opportunities.
Amakhosi were, however, caught napping deep into stoppage time towards half-time, when their defense showed glimpses of last seasons’ lapse of concentration in the crucial stages of the game, when forward Kennedy Musonda broke the deadlock with a cheeky goal after he beat the offside trap and dinked the ball over veteran goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune, who was way out his line.
Newly appointed coach Molefi Ntseki made changes in the second half, which gave the likes of Nkosingiphile Ngcobo, Njabulo Ngcobo, and Sabelo Radebe, amongst others, get a bit of a run.
The tempo of the game in the second half dropped a bit, as there was not much action in front of goal and the game ended in the favour of the home side.
Ntseki and his Chiefs contingent will journey south to Botswana for another keenly anticipated clash against Township Rollers at the national stadium in Gaborone next week Saturday.
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