Confidence key for Bucs

The confidence of his players and identifying his best combinations are the tasks new Orlando Pirates coach Kjell Jonevret has identified as his immediate priorities‚ as the Soweto derby against Kaizer Chiefs looms on Saturday.

Jonevret — a big‚ calm Swede with a genial but authoritative manner — was the surprise choice Pirates brought in as coach to rescue 2016-17 from being a write-off.

His first match on the bench at a soaked Orlando Stadium on Saturday for a 1-1 Premiership draw against Polokwane City‚ showed Jonevret that he has much work to do.

Bucs have one of the top three squads in the country with Mamelodi Sundowns and Wits‚ so their league position of 10th and run of 10 games without a win have been a spectacular underachievement.

Any team to have underperformed to that extent must be low on confidence.

Jonevret — on a crash course not just on his player-heavy, but talented squad‚ but also SA football‚ having not coached outside Scandinavia — said confidence and getting to know his own players were his priorities.

“Maybe it would have been easier if you just had 15 players that you know are good‚” the 54year-old Swede said.

“But that’s correct — Orlando Pirates right now have a lot of good players. There are many who could play a game like this [against City].

“So, of course it’s difficult for me to pick the guys that I really believe or trust to make it good in the way that I want to play.

“But that’s going to take time. On Saturday, I saw 14 players. And I’m satisfied with a lot of them‚ but I also want to work a bit extra with a few for the next games.

“I think that it’s tough to play games when you always play with a gun to your head.

“I said to them on Saturday also‚ you need to start to believe in yourselves.

“You saw the last 15 or 20 minutes, where they were just fantastic sometimes.

“One against ones and getting past players. I mean [Abbubaker] Mobara‚ he gets through all the time. “So, they are good players — they just have to start to believe.”

Jonevret will get a taste of the biggest match in South African football when Bucs meet Chiefs in Saturday’s derby at FNB Stadium. /