Itumeleng Khune faces stiff competition to reclaim the Kaizer Chiefs No.1, and coach Stuart Baxter has admitted that the experienced goalkeeper has dropped down the pecking order at the club.
However, Baxter credited Khune’s work ethic and tenacity as he has been playing second fiddle to Bruce Bvuma, Daniel Akpeyi and Brandon Peterson.
“The credit that I give to Itu [Khune] is the fact that he has such an outstanding career. He played for me in the national team [Bafana Bafana] and for the title-winning Chiefs team, and he finds himself in a position he is in with arguably the best goalkeeper squad in the league,” said Baxter in the Soweto Derby press conference on Thursday.
“And he is still coming to training every morning, doing his work and making himself as available as possible; when he was to stop doing that, you would see a lot of things drying up for Itu.
“But he has decided he wants to be serious about his career and put as much pressure on the others as he can and give himself the best chance.
“When he doesn’t do that, he will probably knock on my door and say, ‘coach, you know what? I’m throwing myself around in the penalty area and getting kicked… I am going to pull out, he hasn’t done that, and we are very pleased about that, and he is still competitive.
Baxter added: “So I can’t tell you when he is going to get in the team, it will be a lot of factors, I am sure, but as long as he keeps himself available and selectable, then he’s always got a chance.”
Khune has been the number choice for both Bafana and Amakhosi for the greater part of the last decade, but injuries over the past few years and a series of blunders in goal has seen Khune relegated to the bench.
Baxter didn’t entirely rule out the possibility of Khune playing in the DStv Premiership Soweto Derby against Orlando Pirates on Saturday.
“We have got competition between our goalkeepers that you could be seeing Itu on the bench or starting in the next game,” he said.
