Kaizer Chiefs head coach Nasreddine Nabi has named three players from the club’s DStv Diski Challenge squad who are ready to step up to the senior team.
Nabi was speaking after Chiefs came back from a goal down to beat Mamelodi Sundowns 2-1 in the Nedbank Cup semi-final on Sunday at a packed Loftus Stadium in Pretoria.
He was responding to a question about the appearance of DDC captain Aden McCarthy, who was seen warming up with the team on the sidelines of the Sundowns game. McCarthy was brought in following the injury of Miguel Inacio.
Chiefs progressed to the final of the Nedbank Cup, courtesy of goals by Wandile Duba and Ashley Du Preez. Sundowns, on the other hand, scored through Teboho Mokoena’s well-taken free kick on the stroke of half-time.
The Glamour Boys will lock horns with rivals Orlando Pirates in the final at the iconic Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday, 10 May.
WHICH DDC PLAYERS DOES NABI THINK ARE READY TO STEP UP?
Besides, 21-year-old McCarthy and Naledi Hlongwane, Nabi mentioned two other academy players who are in his immediate future plans.
“I haven’t forgotten [Nkosana] Mbuthu – remember the Yanga SC game. I don’t forget him. And Pelembe [Manqoba Ozoemena],” Nabi said.
“If there was no pressure at Kaizer Chiefs, you can give the younger players a chance. But when there is a lot of pressure and when the results are not very good, you have to manage when you have to put them to play because if you put them in a bad situation, you can kill their career.”
He added that: “There are a lot of young players and we are waiting for the right time.”
Nabi said the plan for the current season was to rebuild the team while gradually integrating academy players into the senior team.
“The plan – when we discussed with the board for the season – was that we must build a team. And also we have to keep our young players, the DDC players, and give them a chance.”
He praised academy graduate, Wandile Duba, saying he was one of the best players in the game.
“Every time we try to bring a player from DDC, they can make a [training] session with us, and we see if they are ready because we don’t think about how old they are; if they deserve to play, they must play.”
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