Kaizer Chiefs assistant coach Arthur Zwane admits they had to “control and manage themselves properly” against Moroccan giants Wydad Casablanca.
The Soweto giants made history when they qualified for their first-ever Caf Champions League final following their 1-0 aggregate win over Wydad in the two-legged semi-finals.
Amakhosi won courtesy of a solitary goal from Samir Nurkovic in the first leg in Casablanca, which proved to be the difference after they played out to a goalless draw at the FNB Stadium in the return leg.
Chiefs will have it all to play for when they take on Pitso Mosimane’s Al Ahly side in the final, scheduled to be played in the Moroccan city of Casablanca on 17 July.
“It was never going to be an easy journey for us, we knew it was going to be tough to compete against the best teams in Africa,” Zwane told his club’s official website.
“First of all, we just want to thank the man above for giving us the strength and power to get this far. Wydad are a very good team, one of the best on the continent, no doubt.
“They are good in defence and good going forward, but they also have their weaknesses. We knew if you go pound for pound against them and give them enough space, they will punish you.
“What was key for us was to get to the final, that’s what we were working for. It’s always been our dream, even when I was a player, to win this trophy for the chairman. Hopefully, God will give us the strength to go on and win this trophy for him.”
The Amakhosi assistant coach went on to praise the exploits of goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi, who managed to keep another clean sheet in the competition, while also hailing his entire squad for their determination to overcome Wydad.
“We knew if we can contain them until after 25 minutes they will get frustrated and throw a lot of bodies forward and leave spaces for us,” he added.
“And we had chances we could have converted. But we had to control ourselves and manage ourselves properly.
“We know we did not create enough goalscoring chances and that our energy levels would drop. But the fact we did not concede a goal was good enough for us to reach the final.”
