FORMER COACH RETURNS: Chiefs aim to crush Kaze’s rising Sekhukhune

Kaizer Chiefs will look to bounce back from their cup exit when they host Sekhukhune United in Wednesday’s Betway Premiership clash at FNB Stadium.

Kick-off is at 7:30 pm CAT.

FORM

Amakhosi suffered a painful 1-0 defeat to Golden Arrows in the MTN8 quarterfinals on Sunday, despite the Soweto giants creating several chances and this loss exposed their lack of clinical finishing, which they must quickly address.

Nevertheless, Chiefs kicked off their Betway Premiership campaign with a 3-1 win over newly-promoted Kruger United on 1 August and will be keen to maintain their strong start against Sekhukhune.

Meanwhile, Sekhukhune progressed with a dramatic 4-3 extra-time victory over AmaZulu FC in the MTN8 on Sunday, showing their attacking resilience under new coach Cedric Kaze, who will face his former side, Chiefs, for the first time.

Babina Noko also began their Betway Premiership campaign perfectly with a 1-0 win over Durban City on 1 August and will aim to keep their perfect start to the 2026/27 season intact in Johannesburg.

TEAM NEWS

Kaizer Chiefs could be without Flavio Silva and Ethan Chislett, who both picked up injuries in the lead-up to the Golden Arrows game.

Furthermore, Amakhosi's longer-term absentees include Khanyisa Mayo, Paseka Mako, Thulani Mabsaso, Nkanyiso Shinga and Rushwin Dortley.

Sekhukhune United, meanwhile, have no major new injury concerns reported after their high-scoring MTN8 thriller and there are no suspensions for either side.

WHAT WAS SAID?

Kaizer Chiefs Head Coach Fernando Da Cruz

“We’re not afraid of where we are, we will keep working and moving forward. We’re happy with our base or foundation and we want the fans to be proud of this team in the next few weeks," Da Cruz said.

“We have three games in six days so we will need all the squad for these three games because it will be a tough week for us... We wanted to go further in this tournament (MTN8) and we are disappointed to be eliminated [by Golden Arrows].

"But we still have other competitions to compete in and we will continue to work hard to improve step by step."

Sekhukhune United Head Coach Cedric Kaze

"Let me just take the win [over AmaZulu FC] because I almost felt like I was going to have a heart attack with the situation where the game changed so quickly," Kaze said.

"We were up 2-1 and you feel like you've got the game in your hands but things change quickly in a football game. But it's a cup game and that's why they say the dream of cup games are like this and I am very happy that we could go through today."

"It is an emotional one coming on Wednesday [against Kaizer Chiefs] and we have to first recover well because I feel like this game took a toll on the physicality of the players. But I am pretty sure they will be ready for the challenge."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Wandile Duba, Kaizer Chiefs: The former SA U20 international grabbed a brace to inspire Amakhosi to a win over Kruger United on the opening weekend and will look to continue his impressive scoring form in the league by punishing Sekhukhune United once again.

Ngoanamello Rammala, Sekhukhune United: The left-footed attacker came off the bench to provide an assist and score a cracking goal against AmaZulu FC in their dramatic MTN8 victory, and will look to pose major problems for the Chiefs defence with his pace and finishing.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

LAST 10 LEAGUE RESULTS

Season Result Scorers

2021/22 Chiefs 2-0 Sekhukhune Ngcobo, Nange

2021/22 Sekhukhune 0-1 Chiefs Mphahlele

2022/23 Chiefs 0-1 Sekhukhune Mncube

2022/23 Sekhukhune 1-0 Chiefs Seabi

2023/24 Chiefs 2-1 Sekhukhune Castillo, Dove; Mokwana

2023/24 Sekhukhune 1-1 Chiefs Mokwana; Chivaviro

2024/25 Chiefs 1-0 Sekhukhune Vilakazi

2024/25 Sekhukhune 1-1 Chiefs Rammala; Lilepo

2025/26 Chiefs 1-3 Sekhukhune Silva; Grobler 2, Monare