Chippa United head coach Vusumuzi Vilakazi plans to fortify the team’s defence and unleash a more focused attacking force in a bid to see off Kaizer Chiefs in the much-anticipated Betway Premiership showdown at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Wednesday (7.30 pm).
Vilakazi maintains he has noticed sparks of progress since stepping in, yet the team’s most pressing challenge remains finding the back of the net.
In his four games as Chilli Boys manager, the former Amazulu FC player and mentor has yet to win a match. He has two losses and two draws.
And even worse, the team are at the bottom of the PSL log with only eight points from 14 games.
Vilakazi knows how crucial it is that they hold it together.
“This is a game where we need to make sure we are organised defensively, but we must not be worried too much about Kaizer Chiefs,” he said.
“Kaizer Chiefs must be worried about us as well, so we will need to invest more in our game plan, in our strengths, and in our philosophy, or the identity that we have.
“We will definitely be cautious about Kaizer Chiefs, but we will invest more in this game, and we will invest more in Chippa.
“This is a game where we need to take advantage of playing at home and make sure that we dig deep in terms of being victorious on the day, and it is highly possible.
“It’s one of those games where one would say the motivation from the players will definitely be there.
“We just need to make sure we are disciplined in terms of our defensive structure and also focus on our offensive play.
“We need to make sure that we convert those chances we always create game by game.
“We are struggling to convert them into goals.
“So it is unfortunate that football has a short blanket where you need to balance the two, your defensive structure and also your offensive structure.”
Vilakazi said Wednesday’s game strategy would differ from that of Pirates and Siwelele.
He said though they anticipated a challenging matchup with Amakhosi, their strategy was to press offensively.
“In the four games that we played, we have been struggling to get that one goal that can unlock our scoring opportunities, but we will keep on working.
“Some things cannot be rectified overnight. We need more repetition to find ourselves being clinical in front of goal.
“We want to see a flowing and passing game against Kaizer Chiefs, which is something that we are capable of.”
The Glamour Boys sit fourth on the log with 22 points from 11 games.
They will be determined to collect all three points to close the gap on Orlando Pirates at the top of the table.
The Bucs have 28 points, having played one more game.
The Herald
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