Brandon Petersen: Here is ‘biggest problem’ for Kaizer Chiefs captain

Kaizer Chiefs captain Brandon Petersen has been on the receiving end owing to some costly mistakes he has made this season.

Against Golden Arrows, he conceded a soft goal that led to the Glamour Boys’ elimination from the MTN8. He followed it up with another high-profile mistake in the 2-2 Premier Soccer League draw with Richards Bay.

Amakhosi coach Fernando Da Cruz has stood with his skipper, insisting that sometimes it happens but that takes nothing away, especially regarding the quality of the custodian.

Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams further stood with the Amakhosi keeper, insisting shot stoppers pass through a lot. “Brandon Petersen, he was amazing last season, now he’s going through things, but he will reach there again, and that’s the nature of the beast,” he stated.

Petersen’s problem explained

“It’s entirely about Petersen, who obviously is losing concentration. But my main view of Petersen is that he thinks too far ahead. Look at that goal against Arrows. He was expecting a cross, and he came out a bit too early. A goalkeeper is allowed to steal now and then,” ex-Amakhosi keeper William Shongwe told FARPost.

“Sometimes you anticipate things long before they happen. I think that’s one of his biggest problems. Anticipating the next move too much, instead of dealing with the present.

“That comes with experience, thinking I have taken care of a situation. But you are thinking too ahead. Sometimes that’s why, for most goalkeepers, a harmless ball is coming, and you think of stopping it with a side foot.  

“Then you take your eyes off the ball because you are already thinking about where you are going to play the ball. Then that ball slips underneath.”

What is the solution?

“It’s not like it’s the first time it’s happened with Petersen. He got it right last season, and it’s possible for him to make reference to say, ‘Okay, how did I get it right?’ Then go back there and do the things that he did,” Shongwe opined.

“A goalkeeper needs to be kept mentally fit. All the other things, like technique and tactics, that the goalkeeper has to apply are not difficult.  So, he just needs the coaching staff to continue believing in him and give him a few more games. That’s the only way I see it. He just needs to be given an opportunity to get over this period. 

“If, of course, he persists, then that should be a worry. If it persists into the next month and so on, then something might happen because maybe it’s a serious problem,” he concluded.