Kaizer Motaung Jr reveals why Kaizer Chiefs retained Cedric Kaze and Ben Youssef

Kaizer Chiefs sporting director Kaizer Motaung Jr has opened up on some of the key reasons behind the decision to retain coaches Cedric Kaze and Khalil Ben Youssef.

Kaze and Ben Youssef were the assistants to coach Nasreddine Nabi when he joined Chiefs in July 2024 but when the veteran Tunisian parted ways with the club in September, the two were kept.

The coaching duo are now in charge at Naturena at least until the end of the season, when their future will be decided, and so far, they have had mixed fortunes with four wins, as many draws and two defeats in the 10 games they have overseen.

Why were Kaze and Ben Youssef kept by Chiefs?

Motaung Jr says it was an easy decision to keep the two coaches because of their experience in continental football, having been part of Nabi’s coaching staff when the Tunisian tactician guided Tanzanian champions Yanga to the final of the CAF Confederation Cup in 2023.

“Very much so, we will lean on their experience, they have gone all the way to the final, travelled and got the battle scars from the continent,” Motaung Jr said as per iDiski Times.

“And in this tournament, experience is important, on and off the pitch, we’re privileged to have them, they have walked the journey, just excited to see how they navigate this one, we’re very excited.”

Amakhosi in Confederation Cup ‘Group of Death’

Chiefs are therefore hoping that the knowhow of the two coaches will come in handy as they similarly eye Confederation Cup glory this season, having landed in a tough group alongside Zamalek, Al Masry and Zesco United.

Motaung Jr also confirmed that Chiefs’ recruitment was done with an eye on continental football success as they believe a big and quality squad is what is required to succeed at that level where there is a lot of travel that can lead to fatigue and injuries.

“Part of the reason we have the size of the squad we have is for tournaments like this, balancing the domestic and continental duties, if you look at last season we were saying we’re not scoring enough goals, there was a concerted effort to invest in our attacking department,” he added.

What is giving Motaung Jr hope for CAF success?

“If you look who came on board, Mayo scored on debut, Silva scored on debut, Ighodaro scored in his second game, it bodes well – of course everyone needs time to settle in, and I think for them having that start already is a massive plus.

“Even guys like [Siphesihle] Ndlovu coming in and scoring on debut, Paseka [Mako] winning Man of the Match on debut, the environment is healthy, we want to keep it that way, but we need time, they need time to settle in, the group needs time to find it’s best way forward and I think we’re on the right track, a lot of work still to do.”

While they have been dominant in South Africa over the years, Chiefs are yet to conquer the continent with their best performance in Africa being second place in the CAF Champions League in the 2020-21 season.