Serbian deserves Chippa confidence
THOUGH new Chippa United head coach Vladislav Heric failed to clinch a top-eight berth, he fully deserves the extended spell at the helm awarded him by the club yesterday.
History shows that the life of a soccer coach is shorter than usual at Chippa, but Heric appears to have the crucial backing of owner Siviwe Mpengesi to further prove his worth.
Brought in at a late stage of the season, there was steady progression under the astute Serbian tactician.
When Heric arrived in Port Elizabeth with only seven games of the season left, Chippa were precariously placed in 13th position of 16 on the log.
At that stage, relegation was a serious threat, but Heric steered the ship out of troubled water.
One of Chippa’s biggest problems was an inability to score goals and a meagre haul of 27 from 30 matches is not satisfactory.
Heric has already made it clear that he wants to boost Chippa’s strike force during the off-season where he will be able to cast his net far and wide for new talent.
The shrewd coach also wants to tighten up his defence, which proved to be leaky at crucial times during the campaign. It would be safe to assume there will be lots of activity in the transfer market ahead.
While Heric was in charge, Chippa only lost one of seven games and he installed some badly needed confidence into the side after taking over from Teboho Moloi.
Heric’s proudest moment came when his charges crushed Kaizer Chiefs 3-0 away from home with a spectacular display.
Insiders say that Heric has brought a new, relaxed mood to the camp and this has been welcomed by the players and technical staff.
He also adopts an inclusive style of management which fully utilises the skills of all his backroom employees.
When he first arrived at Nelson Mandela Bay stadium, Heric revealed that he would be looking to play an attacking brand of soccer at the club.
He has always combined an attacking philosophy with aggressive defending and he maintains this is the formula to bring success to any professional soccer outfit.
After what he has achieved so far, Heric deserves another crack of the whip and his progress will be followed with interest next season.