Johannesburg — Arthur Zwane’s inside knowledge on what’s expected of the new Kaizer Chiefs coach makes him the right man to fill the vacant post, except the Amakhosi legend has spoken fondly of “an incoming coach”.
For a second season running, Chiefs endured yet another domestic outing as they missed out on all the trophies — to extend their barren run to seven seasons — under Stuart Baxter who replaced Gavin Hunt for the same cause.
Just like Chiefs did when they sacked Hunt, they once again called upon the services of assistant coach Zwane to help out on an interim basis after firing Baxter, who had an underwhelming second stint at the club.
But the Chiefs’ faithful are caught between Zwane’s readiness to assume the top seat on a full-time basis or continuation of his role where he's learning from a “more experienced coach”. But the 48-year-old is mum on the matter.
“As of now, I don’t even know whether I’m going to be part of the team but what is key is that there should be continuity,” he said. “That’s why there should be pillars in place so that whoever comes in finds continuity.
“What killed Chiefs before is that there was no continuity. Everyone that came in wanted to change everything — and that affected even the players. As a club, we’ve seen where the mistake has been and we are trying to rectify that.
“There’ll be pillars in place and there’ll be a way of working. The policy of the club will be there to guide him, whoever that is coming in, at the end of the day. And that, I think, will change things for the better.”
Chiefs are blessed to have Zwane. He knows the club like the back of his hand having been around for more than 22 years. But until when will they continue to look outside for a solution when they have him at their disposal?
The Uefa B Coaching License holder admitted that he’ll gladly take the most demanding job in the land if it falls on his lap, although he’s not obsessed about it. For now, he’s all about helping the club find the right players.
“The style of play is key. You can’t go out there and hope that you’ll challenge for honours when you don’t have identity,” Zwane highlighted. “Identity is key and will make everyone, from the players to the technical staff, account.
“Everyone will account because they'll know what their role and responsibilities are. What is expected of you as a player, coach or football director. That’s something that’s key and we’ve neglected that for a long time.”
“People must identify themselves with the Chiefs' way. That will help us as well when we are going for recruitment, looking at players that have tactical abilities and qualities of playing for a team of Chiefs’ calibre.”
Chiefs appear to be supporting Zwane with all that he needs to rebuild Chiefs. They’ve already re-signed development graduate Zitha Kwinika who was recently crowned Stellenbosch’s Player of the Season.
But hey, stranger things have happened in football. So whether Zwane will assume the hot seat or not next season remains a mystery, for now Chiefs' focus is on winning their last league match against Swallows FC on Saturday.
IOL Sport