Kaizer Chiefs head coach Fernando da Cruz insists his side must maintain a positive mindset in the Betway Premiership title race, despite falling 12 points behind leaders Mamelodi Sundowns.
The Glamour Boys have endured an inconsistent campaign, with dropped points through several draws proving costly as they attempt to keep pace with their rivals at the top of the standings.
Following their latest setback, Da Cruz acknowledged that the situation has become more difficult, but believes there is still enough time to turn their fortunes around, with 21 fixtures remaining in the league.
The French tactician also pointed to Chiefs’ injury problems as a contributing factor to their lack of consistency, suggesting that a healthier squad could help them build the momentum required to get back into contention.
“It’s more difficult today [Saturday] after this game, but the PSL is a long journey, there are 21 fixtures remaining. When we recover our injured players, where we have been unlucky since the beginning of the season, we will have more consistency in our performances, because we made a lot of draws this season,” Da Cruz said.
The Chiefs coach believes several of those draws could have resulted in victories, but admits his team’s lack of experience has played a role in their inability to turn promising performances into maximum points.
He is now hoping that returning players will help change the team’s fortunes, while emphasising the importance of putting together a winning run if they are to revive their title ambitions.
“Normally, many draws, we deserved to win these games but because of our lack of experience, we didn’t win these games. But we will turn it on our side when we recover our squad and for sure, in one moment we must have some positive dynamic with a few wins in a row to continue this journey. We must keep a positive mindset,” he added.
With Pirates setting the pace at the summit, Chiefs have little room for further slip-ups if they are to close the gap, but Da Cruz is refusing to concede the title race with a significant portion of the campaign still to play.