‘Chiefs have a gem in Dube’
Baxter tipped to bring back glory
Just like in his first stint at Kaizer Chiefs, coach Stuart Baxter will face another baptism of fire when they face Mamelodi Sundowns in the opening round of the MTN8 in August.
The new season is set to get under way on August 14 with the MTN8, Sowetan has been told, but the start is likely to be affected by the ongoing court saga between Royal AM and the Premier Soccer League.
In 2012 in his first game as the head coach of Amakhosi, Baxter was hammered 4-1 at Loftus Versfeld. Despite the defeat in that competition nine years ago, Chiefs were able to regroup and went on to win a double under Baxter.
In fact, Baxter guided Chiefs to four major titles, with the last piece of silverware the Glamour Boys won in his final season, the Premiership crown, in 2015.
As he prepares to end the trophy drought at Naturena, ex-defender Tefu Mashamaite, who enjoyed a successful stay under Baxter, feels it is a good omen that they play Sundowns in the same competition again.
“Maybe it is a good omen. The last time we were beaten by Sundowns and we went on to have a successful campaign in those three years, Stuart was with Chiefs,” Mashamaite told Sowetan yesterday.
“So we can look at it as a new beginning and a new possibility to make a change. But a lot has changed since that game, specifically because we lost 4-1 in that game, but things have changed rapidly since then.
“From there, we won the Nedbank Cup and MTN8 under Stuart and two championships. Since then, it has been a drought and that’s the unpredictability of football. To use that game as a reference, I think it would be a bit unfair. I believe Stuart is a good coach at the end of the day.”
The retired defender is also backing Baxter to bring back the glory days at the club as he believes he can do it with the new signings the club is currently bringing.
“I know he is someone who likes organisation and I feel like for a couple of seasons now, Chiefs have been a bit directionless. They need someone who is going to restructure the team and move it forward and I think he is capable of that.”