Kaizer Chiefs interim coach Arthur Zwane has commented on Njabulo Ngcobo’s reaction to his substitution before having a little scuffle with Lee Baxter.
The reigning DStv Premiership Defender of the Season started his second successive match since Zwane and Dillon Sheppard took over from Stuart Baxter.
However, he was at fault for the equalising goal from Sbonelo Conco in their 2-1 defeat at the hands of Golden Arrows and was substituted 13 minutes later for Daniel Cardoso.
‘Roadblock’ then clashed with goalkeeper coach Lee Baxter who was seemingly enraged by the fact that he appeared to snub coach Sheppards attempt to shake his hand as he walked off the pitch.
But Zwane has called for calm in their run of three successive league defeats, stating the 27-year-old will learn from his mistake and that his behaviour was a result of being upset with himself, not by the decision the technical team made to haul him off the field of play.
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“I believe Njabulo was a bit upset at himself that he gave the ball away in the wrong areas and we were punished, I don’t view it as other people may seem to be something that is bad,” Zwane said after the game.
“I was a player myself so maybe he was upset, I believe he was upset at himself and he feels he could have done better there. Because at half-time we spoke about it, that [he should] release the ball early, don’t play the ball at the back, try to play the ball forward so we can attack.
“Unfortunately he decided to play the ball back or he was trying to play short, couldn’t see the danger, so we got punished. As a player he will learn from that, it’s football.
“Football is a game of mistakes, it’s a game that teaches us to be better, as much as I expected him to do better – that was his decision he made on the day on the field and we got punished from it. He will learn from it and move on.”
Chiefs are likely to face Cape Town City next on Saturday at the FNB Stadium, despite the Citizens previously stating they would not honour the fixture that was postponed after the long protracted legal battles with the Premier Soccer League (PSL).
