Five things we learnt from Kaizer Chiefs disheartening third successive defeat
Mamelodi Sundowns made history at the FNB Stadium on Saturday night, 21 January, after completing a double over Kaizer Chiefs for the first time in PSL history.
The 1-0 victory against Chiefs, thanks to a stunning strike by Neo Maema, also saw Sundowns become the first team in the PSL era to win 12 successive league games, breaking their own feat, set in 2007.
For Chiefs, the defeat means that they drop down to fifth place on the DStv Premiership log after losing their third game in a row.
The following are five things we learnt from the Chiefs and Sundowns clash in front of over 33 000 fans in Soweto.
Samkelo Zwane low on confidence
The 20-year-old started becoming a regular starter for Chiefs in December 2022.
He showed glimpses of his potential in Amakhosi’s 2-0 win over Golden Arrows on the 31st of last month but struggled against AmaZulu and Sekhukhune United.
And coming up against the DStv Premiership reigning champions, Sundonwns proved to be a bit too much for the youngster to chew.
Zwane’s lack of experience was exposed by the high-flying Sundowns.
The youngster lost the ball cheaply on numerous occasions throughout the first half, with Chiefs coach seen shouting at the young Zwane on the touchline.
At the beginning of the first half, the youngster came off for Siyathemba Sithebe.
He looked dejected as he headed to the bench to sit with the rest of his teammates, with Chiefs’ media officer Vina Maphosa seen comforting the boy.
Ashley Du Preez rejuvenated; full of confidence
Ashley Du Preez started his first game in the new year and showed resilience and fight throughout the 90 minutes.
He has rejuvenated, covering so much ground and tracked back several times to help in defence.
Du Preez started most of Chiefs’ attacks, mostly in the first half.
However, his efforts were not met by his teammates as Chiefs could not put the ball at the back of the net.
Chiefs toothless in attack
Even though Chiefs started the game on the back foot, towards the end of the first half, Zwane’s men started making a few runs into the Sundowns half.
But the likes of Keagan Dolly and Bonfils-Caleb Bimenyimana were not up to the task in front of goals.
In the second half, Chiefs were in total control as they created plenty goal-scoring opportunity.
However, they failed to convert with the culprits being once again Dolly and Bimenyimana, as well as Sithebe.
Arthur Zwane’s faith in youngsters
Although the young Zwane was substituted after the first half, Chiefs coach Zwane continued to show faith in the club’s development products and brought in Wandile Duba and Mduduzi Shabalala.
The duo impressed in the latter stages of the game, in particular Duba, who replaced Bimenyimana.
Duba made a few dangerous runs in the box, creating a clear cut opportunity by crossing the ball in Chiefs’ box but Sithebe couldn’t convert.
Sundowns not at their best of late but grind out results
Sundowns only pitched up for the game in the first half, where they totally dominated possession. They used both of their fullbacks to push up and attack the Chiefs box. Their goal was a result of that.
Their dominance in midfield also allowed them to attack through the middle, causing Chiefs a lot of trouble in the first 45 minutes of the game.
However, the Tshwane giants have not been playing well in recent games. But one thing they surely showed against Chiefs was resilience and the championship mentality.
In their last four league matches, Sundowns have put in below-part performances with club’s head coach Rulani Mokwena stating that he is not happy.
Against Sundowns, Chippa United and SuperSport United Sundowns were outplayed but they somehow managed to walk away with three points.
RELATED STORY: Misfiring Chiefs could consider bringing a strikers’ coach