Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi has explained his decision to substitute Pule Mmodi midway through the first half of the Betway Premiership game against SuperSport United on Tuesday evening at FNB Stadium.
Nabi recently praised Mmodi for his resurgence after a slow start to the season.
On Tuesday night, the winger started on the left side of Amakhosi’s attack against SuperSport. The Soweto giants lost the league match 4-1, with Gaston Sirino red-carded for a second bookable offence.
While trailing 2-1, Mmodi was taken off in the 36th minute and was replaced by Mduduzi Shabalala. The former Golden Arrows star appeared displeased as he left the pitch. And the Chiefs coach has since clarified his decision to substitute the winger.
WHY KAIZER CHIEFS COACH NABI SUBSTITUTED PULE MMODI EARLY IN THE GAME
“It was not necessarily a tactical change. I noticed most of the players were not in the game,” Nabi told the media. “If I had a chance to substitute six or seven players, I could have done it.
“I could see Mmodi had given a lot into the game in the previous game. Today, already in the early minutes I could see he was not in the game, he was tired…”
“It was a very difficult game from the first minute, and we could already see it was an off-game for us,” added Nasreddine Nabi. “I cannot give excuses all the time, but we didn’t have enough time to recover, two days. The other team had a week.
“It’s a deserved defeat for us, but you can see that mentally, we were not up to standard. We cracked. And unfortunately, you can see that… the result was painful.”
The result moves Chiefs to sixth place with 25 points after 18 games. The four goals conceded by the Soweto giants have resulted in a negative goal difference. They have conceded 23 goals and scored 21 goals this season. Chiefs have won seven matches, lost seven, and drawn four.
RELATED STORY: Chiefs coach Nabi’s heartfelt message to departed Ditlhokwe
