Kaizer Chiefs co-coach highlights experience gap after CAF setback

Kaizer Chiefs co-coach Khalil Ben Youssef admitted that his side’s lack of experience played a key role in their 2-1 CAF Confederations Cup group stage defeat to Egyptian side Al Masry at the Suez Stadium on Sunday. 

Despite the early setback, Ben Youssef remains hopeful that his team can regroup quickly as they prepare to host Zamalek in a crucial group-stage fixture this weekend at the New Peter Mokaba Stadium. In what was Amakhosi’s first appearance in the tournament’s group stages, Bonheur Mugisha opened the scoring for the Green Eagles before Dillan Solomons equalised for the Glamour Boys.

Mohamed Hashem’s late strike ultimately handed Al Masry a hard-fought victory, leaving Chiefs with the challenging task of bouncing back against Zamalek, a side renowned for its continental pedigree.

The Soweto giants last featured at this stage of any continental competition in the 2021 Champions League. While their squad is rich in talent, Ben Youssef said the lack of experience at this level was a decisive factor in their defeat. He highlighted the differences between domestic competitions and the higher demands of continental football.

“We expected that the game will be tough for both teams,” Ben Youssef said after the match. 

“I am happy about the performance of our players; I thought they did very well. The only problem, as I spoke about leading up to the game, was the experience in the competition. 

“If you want to win, you cannot make such mistakes. We created a lot of opportunities to score in the first half, but we were unlucky.

“More than 80% of our players are playing this kind of competition for the first time, and it’s different than the PSL. It’s a competition that requires you to be more focused and aggressive.”

The Chiefs mentor added that the mistakes were costly but expects his side to learn from the setbacks as they approach their next fixtures.

“In the higher levels, football is played in small details, and if you’re not focused in just one second, you can concede a goal. But I spoke with the players after the match about learning from our mistakes, remaining confident and continue to work hard. We will have time to correct our mistakes.”

Chiefs’ midweek league game against Magesi FC was postponed, giving the team more time to reset and prepare for their encounter with Zamalek in Polokwane on Sunday. Ben Youssef added that the team deserved more from their opening match and remains optimistic about a strong response against the White Knights.

“The result is frustrating for everyone because at the minimum we deserved a draw. We will go back to Polokwane with our fans in attendance, and I hope that we win that game and get better in this group stage.

“It will be a tough game, and we know that Zamalek is one of the best teams in Africa, and they have a lot of experience in this type of competition. For us, if we want to make the next round, we cannot make mistakes in home games. We need to win our home games; then we go out looking for points away from home.”