Kaizer Chiefs co-coach Cedric Kaze has highlighted four specific qualities that impressed him about Asanele Velebayi following his first start for the club.
Velebayi was a standout performer as Chiefs hammered Orbit College FC 4-1 in the Betway Premiership at the FNB Stadium in Soweto on Tuesday night.
The former Cape Town Spurs winger, who replaced injured Glody Lillepo, proved to be a constant threat to the Orbit defence. He was fouled three times in the opposition half, more than any other player on the field, before being replaced by Pule Mmodi in the second half.
“I want to take advantage of that question to emphasise as well that there is a process in bringing new players into a team,” Kaze told the media. ‘Sometimes they take too long, but when you rush, you can kill the player’s confidence and things like that.”
The former Young Africans coach, Kaze, said that Velebayi “brings something different”. He then pointed to four areas where Velebayi will be of great help to the club.
WHAT FOUR THINGS IMPRESSED KAZE ABOUT ASANELE VELEBAYI
“But I would say it’s true that he brings something different, because he’s a player who is willing to go one-on-one. He’s a player who, when you create those situations, you give the ball to him in a one-on-one situation, he’s a player who likes to go forward. He’s a player like that.”
Kaze added: “He likes to take on those one-on-one. He’s a player who can cross. He’s a player who can cut inside and shoot. The performance was good for the first time. And we hope that, and we are sure that he can do even more.”
The Orbit victory was defined by the standout performance of Mduduzi Shabalala, who secured a brace and contributed two assists. Mfundo Vilakazi and Flavio Da Silva completed the scoring in the 4-1 result. This win extended Kaizer Chiefs’ strong run of form to three consecutive victories, following previous successes against AS Simba and Durban City FC.
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