Nabi eyes MTN8 spot as Kaizer Chiefs chase strong finish amid exit talk

Amid suggestions and speculation that he will be sacked at the end of the season, Nasreddine Nabi will strive to ensure that Kaizer Chiefs finish the season on a high by qualifying for next season’s MTN8 competition.

The Tunisian may have helped Amakhosi avoid going a full decade without silverware by leading them to Nedbank Cup glory last weekend — Chiefs beating their arch-rivals Orlando Pirates 2–1 in the final at Moses Mabhida Stadium but such has been the club’s poor form in the bread and butter that is the Betway Premiership, his position is far from secure.

He can, however, sway the club’s hierarchy into letting him stay on by winning the next two matches to secure a top-eight spot.

Speaking after the Nedbank Cup triumph, Nabi admitted that he and his technical team have not sparkled in their debut season, but felt there is still time to remedy that.

“It has been a difficult season, but it is not done yet,” he said.

“At some point in the league, we were playing better than we did today, but we were not winning matches. We need to incorporate a winning mentality into the players, but we believe that the season is not done yet.

"We cannot say that we have redeemed ourselves by winning the Nedbank Cup. We have to fight with every ounce against very difficult opponents in Sekhukhune United and Polokwane City to finish in the top eight, and we need to stay focused to get the work done.”

Nabi would have spent most of this week working on getting his players back down to earth following the Nedbank Cup victory — a success that may well have caused some heads to swell. After all, he is in charge of a group that had never tasted success in Chiefs colours, and ending the long trophy drought is sure to have them thinking of themselves as kings of the local game.

“We need to remain humble. It’s true that today there is a lot of joy, but at some point, the celebrations have to end for us to be able to concentrate on the tough task ahead next Saturday,” he said, in reference to their trip away to a Sekhukhune side motivated by having won two monthly Premiership awards.

Eric Tinkler was named Coach of the Month, while attacker Keletso Makgalwa walked away with the Player of the Month accolade. While Chiefs are pushing for a Top 8 spot, Sekhukhune have a much bigger target — they are fighting to finish third on the table and qualify for the CAF Confederation Cup.

Chiefs have their own reason for pride, though, with striker Glody Lilepo having won the Goal of the Month award.

Nabi remembers how the team previously flopped immediately after a big win and is looking to avoid a repeat performance.

“When we won the semi-final against Mamelodi Sundowns, we lost the next league match, probably because we were too festive.

"We need to understand that this is Kaizer Chiefs — this is a big club. It is not exceptional to win a cup; that needs to be a habit for the club.

"You win a cup, you give it value, you enjoy the moment — and after that, you need to look at the next task, prepare for it, and win that one too.”

That next task is the clash away to Sekhukhune United on Saturday at Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane (kick-off 3pm).