Is one season enough for a coach?
The Chiefs hierarchy and fan base have grown notorious for their shrewdness in sacking coaches when the results are not in favour.
The AmaKhosi faithful invaded the pitch at the Moses Mabhida Stadium after the side failed to win a Nedbank Cup semifinal clash against Free State Stars in 2018, compelling then-coach Steve Komphela to hand in his immediate resignation.
Ernest Middendorp got as close as any postStuart Baxter Version 1.0 coach to unseating Sundowns but also fell to the sword after squandering a seemingly secured Premiership title on the final matchday of the 2019/20 season.
He also lost in the final of the 2019 Nedbank
Cup to second-tier TS Galaxy, another embarrassing set-back for the Naturena side.
His successor, Hunt, got the boot just eight months into the job after a run of poor results. This is the weight of expectation that comes with occupying the coach’s seat.
Former Chiefs midfielder and Bafana international Jabulani Mendu feels that the rampant axe was justified.
“Middendorp did very well but he only got a season,” says Mendu. He continues: “Did Gavin Hunt get more time? Did Middendorp get more time? So why should Baxter? The coach has to also take some accountability.
“If I were to watch Kaizer Chiefs play today, I don’t see players that are happy to play. They have all the quality to be competing with Mamelodi Sundowns for the league, but I don’t think the players are comfortable with how they are required to play.
“We see certain key players benched for no obvious reason. Njabulo Ngcobo, who was voted the Defender of the Season in 2020/21 is now on the bench or only being used as a midfielder.
“Why are these players not playing? Why sign Ngcobo if you are still going to play [Daniel] Cardoso and [Erick] Mathoho?”
On solutions to end Chiefs’ seven-year
“IF I WERE TO WATCH KAIZER CHIEFS PLAY TODAY, I DON’T SEE PLAYERS THAT ARE HAPPY TO PLAY.”
trophy drought, Mendu argues that the players may not be the right fit for the team’s current style of play.
“Well, the simple answer is that Kaizer Chiefs have to start winning games. But to go into a bit more detail: Baxter won the league in 2015 because he played with players that suited his style of play.
“These were players like Erick Mathoho, Tefu Mashamaite, very physical players as you can tell. Because he was a coach who preferred to play the physical style and win through set-pieces.
“Today, Chiefs has players like Keegan Dolly, Nkosingiphile Ngcobo and Khama Billiat. These are all great players but are they suited to how the team wants to play? You can’t have a player like Ngcobo but want to play a physical type of football.
The Chiefs Reserves team flourished under the guidance of Arthur Zwane and Dillon Sheppard. Mendu believes that it’s high time Chiefs gave 10111 a fair chance.
“The club has to start trusting its own structures and stop constantly looking for the solution outside. Zwane has been a player at Chiefs and did exceptionally when he was coaching the reserves.
“Why not give him a chance to lead the team? These are the kind of decisions that will help get Chiefs back to the top, getting in people who carry and understand the identity of the club.
“So in my opinion, give Zwane a proper pre-season, ask him how he wants to play and who he will need to sign in order to play that way,” says Mendu.