Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi suggested they would have finished in a better position in the league had he opted for a quick-fix approach of prioritising results over the process.
He insisted he couldn’t sacrifice his philosophy on how a big team such as Amakhosi should play just so they could be in the top eight.
Amakhosi, who suffered 12 league defeats this season, drew goalless against Polokwane City in their last game of the season at FNB Stadium on Saturday to all but confirm their failure to make the top eight in what was Nabi’s first campaign in charge of the side. It’s the second season on the trot Chiefs have failed to make the top eight.
“If you want immediate results like the team we played today [Polokwane] you park the bus. What football [has] this team proposed? It’s a bus in 80m and counterattacks. Imagine Chiefs playing like that in Africa? But Polokwane finished better and in the top eight, but with what football? You want this football to be played by Chiefs?
“For myself, I know I came here for a model game that is needed at a big club like Chiefs. I know we took a risk in defence, but I prefer to win with the principles of the game … offensive, protagonist philosophy of Kaizer Chiefs,” Nabi said.
Do you want me to be in the top eight but when we play Zamalek, Wydad, I play with players 80m [away from goal] would you prefer this as a fan of Chiefs.
— Nasreddine Nabi
The Amakhosi coach insisted he could not deploy a defensive approach just to get the results. Despite their league slump, Chiefs still managed to win the Nedbank Cup, ending their decade-long trophy drought and they also qualified for the CAF Confederation Cup in the process.
“Do you want me to be in the top eight but when we play Zamalek, Wydad, I play with players 80m [away from goal] ? Would you prefer this as a fan of Chiefs?” Nabi asked again.
Nabi reasoned that their “offensive” approach helped them beat teams such as Stellenbosch, Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates, asserting they were a better side than the former.
“Stellenbosch is not better than us, they are number three … why did I beat them three times? Why did I beat Sundowns, Orlando Pirates? With offensive football?”
Chiefs beat Stellies in the Nedbank Cup quarterfinals and completed a league double over them, while they only beat Sundowns and Pirates in the semifinals and final of the Ke Yona cup.
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