Jessica Motaung: Nasreddine Nabi is here, but Kaizer Chiefs will make the hard decisions to get back to the top

JESSICA Motaung says Kaizer Chiefs are not a mid-table team, and the club have been having hard conversations with regards to finding ways to moving up to the top, where they belong.

Having finished out of the top eight in the past two seasons and only ending what has been a decade-long trophy drought by winning the past campaign’s Nedbank Cup, the Amakhosi have lost their shine as the country’s Glamour Boys.

But Motaung, the club’s marketing director and daughter of chairman Kaizer, says they are intent on changing all that in the upcoming campaign.

“Ninth and 10th (positions) is not great for us, and part of the hard conversations we’ve had is that we cannot find ourselves there (again),” Motaung told media at the club’s Taung Village in Naturena, Johannesburg on Thursday during the launch of this year’s Toyota Cup.

Chiefs announced that they will be facing Ghana’s Asante Kotoko at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium on July 26 in a match that pits ‘Africa’s fallen giants’ against each other.

Like Chiefs, Kotoko have recently fallen on hard times and only finished third in the Ghanaian league.

They too were, however, crowned Ghana’s FA Cup champions, and will be going into the CAF Confederation Cup along with the Amakhosi.

The two teams are not bothered by the possibility of meeting in the secondary continental inter-club competition, and are looking forward to using their clash as a way to kick-starting the upcoming campaign.

It would appear that part of the conversations Motaung spoke of are whether the club continue their relationship with coach Nasreddine Nabi, who was reported to be on his way out prior to leading Chiefs to that Nedbank Cup victory over defending champions Orlando Pirates.

According to Motaung, though, Nabi is still their coach, and will be travelling with the club to their pre-season camp out in The Netherlands, where they will play a few matches.

“The coach is here and doing his work, so let’s allow the process to unfold internally,” she responded to a question about the Tunisian technician and his relationship with Chiefs.

“There are reviews being done, and there are discussions right now about where we are going as a team.

“The vision is to ascend and take our rightful place in South African and African football, and the conversations are there about how to get there – and we will make the hard decisions to make sure we get there.”

One of those hard decisions could well be to sever ties with Nabi, who is said to not be enjoying much support at the club.

The other is for Chiefs to beef up their squad with quality players, and Motaung pleaded with the club’s supporters to bear with them and await their official announcement on that score.

“First and foremost, we have to be fair. There are always challenges for players, and I am grateful for the players who dedicated themselves to Chiefs, from the past and present,” she said.

“Sometimes things work out, sometimes they don’t. The technical team is working hard, and they have the support of the chairman.

“Every team goes through cycles and challenges.

“We are fortunate to have had years and years of success, and winning the Nedbank Cup has given us an opportunity to exhale.

“We are asking our supporters to be patient, and allow us to have our I’s dotted and our T’s crossed.

“We will make our announcement, so please allow the information to come from us.”

Kaizer Chiefs Pre-Season Tour Fixtures

8 July: SBV Vitesse Arnhem

11 July: FC Utrecht

12 July: NEC Nijmegen

15 July: PEC Zwolle

16 July: FC Twente Enschede