Du Preez is the marquee signing

Du Preez had been linked with the Glamour Boys for more than a year and has finally been purchased. He reportedly had a R10 million release clause in his contract with Stellenbosch FC, which, it seems, Amakhosi have triggered to bring him on board. At 25, his peak years are coming up, whilst he has accrued good experience in the topflight. His first campaign in the DStv Premiership brought just three goals in the 2020/21 season, before he exploded somewhat last term. The Stellenbosch-born forward scored nine times in the PSL as six of those were the first goal in the match and none were penalties. In total, he has 12 league goals in 64 appearances, with a strike every 383 minutes on the pitch. Zwane has been immediately impressed with his marquee signing during pre-season, saying, “I must give credit to coach Steve (Barker) and the entire technical team at Stellenbosch. I think they’ve done very well to develop Ashley. He’s one of the best players that I’ve ever seen. Very explosive and very good technically.” A big question is which position Du Preez will play. He’s been used as a left winger, a lone number nine and in a twostriker system at the Winelands club. If he plays as the striker in a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 shape, he may find himself isolated and too reliant on attacking space behind the opposition’s backline. When Chiefs face a deep, compact defence, Du Preez may really struggle to operate in tight areas and with no space to run into. If he is used as a left winger, it will be imperative that he isn’t tasked with too much defensive work and is not therefore seen in his own half, chasing the opposition’s right back. He needs to be high up the pitch for transitions and closer to the box, so a left winger role may not be absolutely ideal either. Zwane may instead look at the type of opponents that are coming up and base his decision on that. If he anticipates facing a high line, then Du Preez would be best suited down the middle. If Amakhosi are facing a very attacking right back or wingback – such as Khuliso Mudau or Bandile Shandu – then the speedy star could be used to lead counters in the space behind that fullback by “cheating” and staying on the halfway line.