IT is not a frequent occurrence that coaches and players alike clash in different countries and in the colours of different teams in Africa, but on match-day two of the Betway Premiership, those rare occasions will come to fruition.
When AmaZulu FC head coach Pablo Franco met Kaizer Chiefs’ new man Nasreddine Nabi in the respective colours of Simba SC and Young Africans in an epic Tanzanian derby three years ago, neither of them would have predicted a rematch in a different country.
In the 2021/22 season, Franco’s Simba finished as runners up in the Tanzanian league title race, 13 points behind Nabi’s ‘Yanga’.
In a different environment and certainly different circumstances, the two coaches will do battle again in Durban when Amakhosi visit the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Wednesday.
Speaking to the media ahead of this match, Franco expressed how he has seen the immediate impact made by Nabi at Chiefs and relished the opportunity to clash with him again.
🟢 𝗙𝗜𝗥𝗦𝗧 𝗛𝗢𝗠𝗘 𝗚𝗔𝗠𝗘 🏟️
— AmaZulu FC (@AmaZuluFootball) September 17, 2024
Don't miss out on our first home game of the season against @KaizerChiefs on Wednesday, the 25th of September at Moses Mabhida Stadium 🎫
We need you to help us defend our turf. Tickets are available at @TicketProSA retailers and AmaZulu Fan… pic.twitter.com/lBzrRnOzLU
“I really like them, I think they’ve improved from last season. I know the current coach very well because I played against him in Africa and he’s been successful wherever he goes,” he said.
“I think they signed very good players in positions where they had weaknesses, and in the places where they weren’t so weak, they managed to create competition and that makes a team grow.
“We know about their quality collectively and individually, but we also know what we are capable of and our quality when we’re facing these kinds of teams.”
AmaZulu lost their opening game of the season against Polokwane City and could be under huge pressure if they fail to collect points against Amakhosi.
For Nabi and Chiefs, it was the perfect start to life under their new technical team as they came back from a goal down to snatch a 2-1 win against Marumo Gallants at Free State Stadium, with two of the club’s academy graduates on the score-sheet.
A debut win ✌️💛! Thank God for making it happen.@KaizerChiefs #Amakhosi #Amakhosi4Life pic.twitter.com/EM1dnJzWzA
— Fiacre Ntwari (@ntwari_fiacre) September 16, 2024
The streets and social media have been abuzz since that dramatic night in Bloemfontein, with a huge wave of support following Chiefs wherever they go.
Despite being the home city of AmaZulu, Durban has been a second residency for Chiefs for decades now, with the club choosing to play some of their home games at the World Cup venue in recent seasons.
Former Orlando Pirates and Bidvest Wits man Ben Motshwari sat alongside coach Franco at the press conference and urged his teammates to block themselves off from Chiefs’ support.
“Playing against these big teams and playing in front of thousands of fans is a confidence booster, but in this case it’s all about us,” he said.
“We can focus on Chiefs as just being our next opponents, but right now our main focus should be improving ourselves as a club and going into this game with clear minds.
“Yes, it’s a big game against Chiefs but we don’t want to dwell on that.”