Kaizer Chiefs boss Kaizer Motaung has backed Giovanni Solinas by saying that the Italian’s late arrival at the club is the reason behind his slow start.
Despite having a number of months to appoint former coach Steve Komphela’s replacement, the hierarchy at Chiefs took their time and only appointed Solinas two weeks prior to the start of the season.
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The Glamour Boys have since struggled at the start of the season as they remain winless in the league after drawing four and losing one of their opening five league matches, while also conceding an astonishing seven goals in the process.
The Amakhosi also suffered disappointment in the MTN8 as they were eliminated at the semi-final stage by SuperSport United.
The slow start, however, does not worry Motaung who believes that Solinas needs time before he can be properly judged.
‘You must bear in mind that the coach didn’t have the pre-season training with the team‚’ Motaung said.
‘So, he just came in and unfortunately, the programme we had in August was very tight and hectic.
‘The coach needs to be given a chance because he did not start the season like all other coaches who had the benefit of a pre-season.
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‘So far I’m still happy with what is happening, except that we’ve had some glitches in the defensive areas.
‘You must also understand that we also have new players coming into the team and that augurs very well for us going forward.
‘You must be realistic about the coach. The man came in just two weeks before kick-off. He hasn’t had a pre-season with the team and you expect results. He doesn’t have a magic wand to change things overnight.
‘What you have to look at is the performance of the team‚ check whether there is a difference or not. I know you will say there’s no improvement but maybe that’s because there is a glitch that we have in the defence.
‘But look at the team we have overall, and you can see the performance. You cannot tell me you can’t see any difference.
‘It’s better to experience these kinds of hiccups early in the season than to have them later in the season.
‘So I’m not giving the coach any number of games [to start winning],’ concluded the Chiefs boss.
