Kaizer Chiefs assistant coach Cedric Kaze has stood with the Glamour Boys youngsters, especially midfielder Mduduzi Shabalala, who has been under heavy criticism from the fans after his inconsistent display against Orlando Pirates last Saturday.
The 21-year-old was blamed for the Sea Robbers' equaliser after losing the ball in midfield. It ended with Mohau Nkota feeding the advancing Evidence Makgopa, who needed a touch to beat Bruce Bvuma in the Kaizer Chiefs' goal; Glody Lilepo had scored early. Relebohile Mofokeng scored the winning goal to give his team a fifth consecutive Soweto derby win across all competitions.
Shabalala has played 26 Premier Soccer League matches, scoring four goals and providing an assist in the process.
Ahead of the Nedbank Cup final set for Saturday at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, Kaze has explained why Shabalala shouldn't be blamed for the Glamour Boys' struggle, arguing all the players should be held responsible.
‘Chiefs didn't do enough to win the games'
“Concerns about Mdu and the youngsters we have, I don’t believe or think, we lost the games because of Mdu or any other player, but we didn’t do enough to win the game, all of us, from those who started and those who came off the bench,” he told the media.
“We analysed what we did good and what we didn’t do so good this week, and we know, for example, how important Shabalala has been this season, especially in the beginning of the season, how instrumental he was, and how good he is.
“We believe in difficult moments, we need to be there for young players, and they’ll learn from what happens on the field going forward,” Kaze concluded.
Shabalala made his debut in May 2022 and has since played 78 games across all competitions with eight goals and five assists in the process.
