Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi will be experiencing his second Soweto Derby this weekend after taking over the coaching of the club at the beginning of the season.
The Glamour Boys lost against their city rivals Orlando Pirates, by a solitary goal in the last meeting. On Saturday, Nabi hopes to collect his first win against the Soweto giants in the Premier Soccer League.
The well-travelled Tunisian has experienced the Kinshasa Derby between AS Vita and DC Motema Pemba, the rivalry in Morocco that brings together Rabat teams AS FAR and FUS, as well as the Kariakoo Derby in Tanzania played by Simba SC and Young Africans – Yanga, SC.
However, Nabi insists he has seen nothing like the Soweto Derby, and feels more should be done to market it because it is special and one of its kind.
‘Soweto Derby should be protected and promoted'
“Honestly, it’s not because I’m in South Africa; the Soweto Derby is a South African, continental, and international cultural heritage,” the tactician said in a pre-match interview.
“It should be protected and promoted, like the Tunis derby with Club Africain and Esperance, Cairo derby with Ahly and Zamalek, Casablanca derby with Wydad and Raja, and the Kariakoo Derby in Dar es Salaam, AS Vita, and Motema Pembe.
“The Soweto Derby is more than football; we need to conserve and protect this heritage. I lived many of these moments of African derbies, it’s exceptional, but I love this Soweto Derby. It’s a cultural event that entertains, the way people speak about it, and how people live the derby in South Africa,” Nabi concluded.
After the Saturday game, Chiefs and Pirates will, once again, battle for the Nedbank Cup in the final to be played at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on May 10.
