iDiski TV analyst Junior Khanye has questioned why Kaizer Chiefs head coach Fernando Da Cruz didn’t start Lebohang Maboe in the side’s defeat to Red Arrows in the CAF Confederation Cup second preliminary round, second leg.
Chiefs came into the game in Durban on Friday trailing 1-0 from the first leg but found a goal through Bradley Cross which took the game to a penalty shootout where they lost 3-2. The result meant they were eliminated from the tournament missing the group stage for the first time in two seasons.
They’ve also extended their winless streak to seven matches across all competitions. Meanwhile, Maboe missed a few matches including the first leg in Zambia with injury and came on a second half substitute, featuring for 17 minutes and missed a penalty in the shootout.
Khanye believes that if Maboe was fit enough to be in the match-day squad, he should have started ahead of Sibongiseni ‘Ox’ Mthethwa.
“I was surprised to see Maboe on the team list why didn’t he start him and [opted to] start Mthethwa?’ asked Khanye on iDiski TV.
“Why only bring him on in the second half, start him isn’t he fit? I mean if he’s able to come on in the second half it means he’s also fit enough to start, play him. Last time the coach experimented with Reeve Frosler and the [Thulani] Mabaso kid.
“You can tell the boy doesn’t play regularly but you could see he hardly lost the ball and played forward passes. I mean Mthethwa, it shows that they have an average squad hence I’m not surprised they are out of the competition.”
Khanye further poked holes in Amakhosi’s depth saying there are some players in his opinion who shouldn’t even playing for his former side.
“The coach believes in the likes of [Pule] Mmodi who I don’t think gives the team anything”, added Khanye.
“I’m very disappointed with certain players like Mthethwa, [Faiz] Abrahams. Honestly, they are players who can’t play, even Mmodi, they are players who can’t play there. Even [Inacio] Miguel, they can’t.”