Flavio debut goal puts Chiefs in second place with fourth straight victory

Kaizer Chiefs secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Golden Arrows on Saturday evening, with substitute Flavio Da Silva scoring the winning goal on his debut.

The win at Moses Mabhida Stadium moves Chiefs up to second place in the league standings, continuing their impressive start to the campaign.

Coach Nasreddine Nabi made a few key changes to the starting lineup from their last match, with Ashley Du Preez leading the attack. It was a fast-paced start, as Du Preez nearly made an immediate impact, but his powerful strike was saved by Arrows goalkeeper Zakahle Ngcobo after just eleven minutes.

Chiefs dominated possession for much of the first half, but the Arrows defense remained disciplined, restricting the Chiefs to efforts from distance.

The visitors, however, had to be cautious, as Arrows’ Sabelo Sithole nearly scored against the run of play, only to be denied by an excellent save from Chiefs goalkeeper Brandon Petersen.

In the second half, Chiefs almost fell behind when a lively start from Arrows saw Sede Dion's volley hit the post. This close call prompted a decisive triple substitution from Nabi on the hour mark. He brought on new signing Flavio Da Silvaalong with Mfundo Vilakazi and Gaston Sirino.

VILAKAZI BECAME A PROVIDER FOR SILVA’S GOAL

The move paid off handsomely just eight minutes later. Vilakazi and Sirino combined beautifully to set up Da Silva, who calmly scored with a first-time finish to mark his debut with a goal.

The late goal was all Chiefs needed to seal the victory. Despite a late chance from Sirino that sailed wide, Chiefs held on for a crucial win, continuing their impressive start to the campaign.