CAF Confederation Cup: Kaizer Chiefs coach Da Cruz urges unity ahead of Red Arrows decider

Kaizer Chiefs coach Fernando Da Cruz has urged the club’s supporters to continue believing in the team as Amakhosi prepare for a decisive second-leg encounter against Red Arrows in the CAF Confederation Cup.

The South African giants suffered a frustrating 1-0 defeat away to the Zambian side in the first leg of the second preliminary round on Saturday in Ndola, leaving themselves with work to do ahead of Friday’s return fixture.

Red Arrows captain Alassane Diarra scored the only goal of the match in the 77th minute to hand the hosts a narrow advantage going into the return leg, scheduled for October 23 at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban.

Following the defeat, Da Cruz acknowledged the disappointment among the Kaizer Chiefs faithful but insisted that the tie remains open and called for unity between the players, technical team, club management and supporters.

The French tactician believes his players have the quality to overturn the deficit and secure qualification for the group stage, but stressed that they will need the backing of their supporters to achieve that objective.

“They shouldn’t be very happy right now. No, I know very well they are not happy. Because the results today at PSL, we don’t lose, we don’t win either. Today, we lost. But the first leg is a return match. We need the supporters for the game on Friday. To support us, because I know that the team is able to reverse the result,” Da Cruz said.

“What is most important is that in difficult moments we must stay united, players, staff, club and supporters to get through this period and get better results.”

The Chiefs coach also admitted that his team struggled to create clear-cut scoring opportunities against the Zambian outfit, describing their attacking display as an unusual departure from their performances in the domestic league.

Da Cruz acknowledged the need for tactical adjustments ahead of the return encounter, insisting that his technical team would analyse the first-leg performance and identify ways to make the team more dangerous in the final third.

“We have to be more impactful, more offensive. It’s the first game since the start of the season where we have created so few chances, but it’s not a habit,” he said.

“We are going to put something in place to allow us to reverse the result. For sure, we need to change something to create more chances. Normally, we create more chances in PSL. It’s the first time that we didn’t create a lot of chances, so we need to analyse and after we need to change something to be able to qualify.”

The comments suggest that Kaizer Chiefs could adopt a more attacking approach in Durban as they attempt to overturn the deficit and keep their continental campaign alive.

Amakhosi must win by at least two goals to secure qualification within normal time. A 1-0 victory would level the aggregate score and send the contest into extra time, while a draw or defeat would see Red Arrows advance.

With qualification at stake, Da Cruz will be hoping his tactical changes deliver a more productive attacking performance, while the support of the Chiefs faithful could prove important as the South African side attempt to recover from their first-leg setback.

The coach’s message is clear: despite the disappointment in Ndola, Kaizer Chiefs must remain united and make the most of their home advantage if they are to progress to the next stage of the CAF Confederation Cup.