Comitis will be demanding answers Khenyeza ‘is not a bad person’
CAPE Town City have made a habit of losing to the bottom teams in the PSL and as a result find themselves flirting with relegation.
City, once feared, first handed bottom-placed hosts AmaZulu their first win of the season (2-1), then came unstuck at home to Chippa United (1-0) when they were at the foot of the table, before going down 3-2 at Polokwane City on Sunday to hand the basement dwellers only their third victory from their last 16 outings.
And let’s not forget about the 1-0 defeat away to relegation-threatened NFD outfit Mbombela United 10 days ago in the Nedbank Cup round of 32.
One has to wonder how a talented group of players who have not won a game yet on the road can implode the way they have this season. Who is to blame for the sorry state of affairs is the conundrum facing City chairperson John Comitis, who wasn’t at Sunday’s game as he was in Mauritius. But the boss is back in town and will want answers after City’s latest debacle.
Head coach Jan Olde Riekerink, who he backs to the hilt, has a lot to answer for. The Dutchman has slightly improved the plight of the team since replacing Benni McCarthy in November. While Olde Riekerink is trying his best and believes in his troops, three wins from 11 games isn’t good enough with so much at stake.
His tactics that his charges battle with are a cause for concern.
Why opt for a counter-attacking approach against a side like Polokwane who they beat with ease in November (5-3) when his assistant Vasili Manousakis was in the dugout.
City’s first game after McCarthy departed saw the players deliver a topclass performance to which the opposition had no answers. They played with speed and flair, and scored with ease.
There was no sitting back and allowing the other team to come at them, as was the case on Sunday. Olde Riekerink opted for a 4-2-4 formation and it never worked. Something needs to be done before it’s too late. City are only four points ahead of the bottom four teams with eight matches to play.
City have a break before their next league match against 10th-placed Bloemfontein Celtic at Cape Town Stadium on 8 March, presenting Comitis with the chance to get to the bottom of what’s holding back his charges from playing to their true potential.
AMAZULU will not be taking any legal action against Mabhuti Khenyeza for what they regard as “unprocedural” resignation.
Khenyeza quit his post as Usuthu’s assistant coach on the club’s WhatsApp group at the weekend to take up a new position as head coach of NFD side TS Galaxy. Galaxy chairman Tim Sukazi confirmed that they have agreed a two-year contract with the former Kaizer Chiefs striker to take over as a replacement for Dan Malesela with whom they parted ways last week.
According to AmaZulu, Khenyeza resigned immediately after Usuthu lost 2-1 in the KwaZulu-Natal derby against Golden Arrows at Jonsson Kings Park Stadium on Saturday. “We were all surprised. Mabhuti is not a bad person and I don’t know who advised him. He didn’t do things by following the right procedure,” a source at AmaZulu said.
“It was disrespectful to the club that he sent a resignation letter via a WhatsApp group. Would he feel right if his contract was sent to a WhatsApp group? He is still young and he will learn that you need to do things in a certain way. But the club won’t be pursuing any legal action against him. They’ve got serious things to worry about.” Ayanda Dlamini, the club’s reserve team coach, has been promoted as an assistant coach to Josef Vukusic for the remaining eight PSL matches of the season.
“Most ex-footballers tend to neglect the administration part of football. AmaZulu are a club that doesn’t stand in people’s way. Last year, he asked to leave the club and joined Maritzburg United and we allowed him to do that. He then resigned there and asked to come back and we welcomed him with open arms. Mabhuti should have done it better. You can’t just resign on WhatsApp. He should have sat down with Lunga Sokhela (general manger) and explained his situation,” the source said.