‘IT WILL BE EASY TO LEAD THIS GROUP’

Willard Katsande feels leading Kaizer Chiefs will not be a burden, based on what has been instilled by the new technical team so far. “The technical team has instilled confidence and shown us a diagram about how everybody should perform,” the stand-in captain says. “They are giving us the structure and keep reminding us to think around the structure. They also always want to hear submissions from us which is nice as it allows us players to express ourselves better, considering the talent we have in the team. They told us they will not limit us as long as we operate under the structure which is important. Every player is getting freedom and I’m sure you can see that from the way we are playing that there is energy and happiness. “So I think for me to lead this group will be easy because everybody has a task to play and the coach made sure he explained each and everybody’s role in the team, whether they are playing, are at home or on the field. Everyone has a role. Even with the kids from development who come to train with us, the coach always has time for them, explaining how they should be structured to the DNA of Kaizer Chiefs.” The Zimbabwean feels the squad has lifted their game in recent weeks, with their willingness to learn helping them improve as a unit. “I think it is quite easy for us as senior players to lead the group because everybody is focused and has taken their game to another level by adding another 5-10%, which is a plus,” he says. “I think we are peaking at the right time and we keep on learning. You have to understand that every day is a learning day because in life, every day is a learning day. Each game we play we learn, no matter how old we are. You need to open your eyes to learn so that you can grow in life.” Katsande then applauded Ernst Middendorp’s opendoor policy, and feels the club are heading in the right direction as they look to make a success of the second half of the campaign. “We are on the right track and I trust the process,” he says. “We cannot say we are there yet, but we are improving as each game comes. Every day at training we learn and I think it is helping us to put everything in our DNA to understand what the coach wants since he is the one who opened the doors so that we can go to him directly and tell him what we think. He allows us to submit our opinion and he also gives his which then helps to find common ground. I think it is helping us a lot because we are a team that has had some energy injected. We are heading in the right direction.”