Kaizer Chiefs captain Yusuf Maart has explained why head coach Nasreddine Nabi needs more time to rebuild the Soweto giants and recapture their past dominance.
The Tunisian mentor joined Amakhosi ahead of the 2024/25 Betway Premiership season from Moroccan giants AS FAR with high expectations.
Nabi shoulders the huge responsibility of getting the team back to the level where they were once a real powerhouse in SA football, known as ‘the Cup Kings’.
The Naturena-based side is currently on a nine-year trophy drought after last winning a major trophy in 2015. During that time, Chiefs clinched the league title and the MTN8 with coach Stuart Baxter at the helm.
Although Nabi’s tenure at Chiefs has gotten off to a bumpy start, characterised by a struggle for consistent league victories, the Nedbank Cup presents a potential source of optimism.
Nabi’s troops are winless in their last six league matches, and they’re positioned ninth on the log with 30 points in 25 matches.
In the last six matches, Chiefs lost against Golden Arrows, Richards Bay FC, and Marumo Gallants, and they drew against TS Galaxy, Cape Town City FC, and Chippa United. But they are enjoying a good run in the Nedbank Cup as they are in the final and have also qualified for the CAF Confederation Cup.
‘HE [NABI] NEEDS TO LEARN THE PSL’ – YUSUF MAART
As Chiefs continue the progress of building a competitive team, the club’s central-midfielder and captain, Maart, says the highly-rated coach needs more time to adapt to the PSL.
“Coach Nabi has his kind of ways of coaching, how he wants the team to play, and it’s very suitable for us as players,” said Maart.
“It’s suitable because he knows what he wants to do, but I think he just needs to learn the PSL, and he will learn how things go in the league. It’s his first experience, and he’ll adapt. Maybe next season things will work out, you will never know.”
The Bafana Bafana international has been a regular starter in Nabi’s team at Chiefs after featuring in 30 games in all competitions, scoring two goals and providing three assists.
Maart has had different midfield partners at Chiefs with players such as Thabo Cele, Njabulo Blom, Sibongiseni Mthethwa and Nkosingiphile Ngcobo, and Samkelo Zwane.
RELATED STORY: ‘I’ll accept that…’ Maart on Chiefs contract situation