Just over two months have passed since Mamelodi Sundowns’ 4-0 thrashing of Kaizer Chiefs in the middle of August sent the preseason hoopla and expectations for Kaizer Chiefs crashing down to earth.
In their first major match of the new season, Amakhosi, under the direction of coach Arthur Zwane, showed up with their revitalized team and youthful talent.
The Brazilians excelled them in every area on that particular day, exposing every flaw in their play. However, after that loss, Zwane’s lack of tactical awareness caused his inexperienced team to launch an attack in an attempt to take on Sundowns.
Zwane’s starting lineup and game plan in the most recent Soweto Derby against bitter rival Orlando Pirates. showed evidence of a well-learned lesson and abandoned his typical tactics to control ball possession in order to create goal-scoring opportunities.
This time, Zwane stressed the importance for his team to recognize and take advantage of any openings created by the Buccaneers, who constantly strive to dominate the tempo and the majority of action areas while in possession.
Although Chiefs had 44% of the first half’s possession against the Pirates, they had the better opportunities of the two sides and probably ought to have gone into the interval with a two-goal lead.
Ashley Du Preez played a crucial role in Zwane’s strategy to take advantage of and expose the Pirates’ lack of spatial awareness and counterattacking speed, but she was once again guilty of passing up two one-on-one opportunities with Siyabonga Mpontshane in the Pirates goal.
Speaking after the game, the 49-year-old coach acknowledged that he deliberately chose to approach this match differently than he typically would prepare for others, which is a fantastic compliment to his tactical flexibility.
“I believe that our approach was pretty well thought out in terms of tactics, and the lads went in and carried it out. We have always known that if they play a high line, we would eventually come up to them,” said Zwane.
The ability of Chiefs and Zwane to comprehend the group of players he has at his disposal in contrast to the opponents will be a crucial component of their success going ahead.
The Naturena-based club has a history of being primarily regarded as an entertaining club that also consistently and stylishly amasses championships. That’s the type of pressure Zwane often responds to when dealing with prominent fixtures.
The Glamour Boys’ next game, which will be in the forthcoming Black Label Cup on November 12 with their first matchup versus Pirates once again, will give them the chance to try additional things.