Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi apologised to supporters after their 4-0 drubbing as he admitted his side were outgunned by a superior Mamelodi Sundowns side in Saturday’s Carling Knockout quarterfinal.
Elimination from the competition continues Chiefs’ long trophy drought, which is now in its 10th season, as they were overrun by a rampant Sundowns.
“I would like to apologise to our fans, because we were not good, in any way, defensively and in both boxes. It was a day without any chances and for that we apologise to our fans that are disappointed after the result, but we can promise them that we are going to work harder to make the team better, to improve the team. We knew that the team was not as ready as people would think, but this result was an accident that we believe will not happen again in the future.”
Nabi said players had been nervous and made poor decisions throughout the game
“The players were not good enough, but the responsibility is mine. As coach, I’m going to take full responsibility for the game, because I don't want to criticise my players in front of media, but I will do it inside the change room.
“Everyone will take his responsibility and but I believe that it's true that they were far from their best performance, because even at the beginning of the game, they looked very nervous, with a lot of missed passes, a lot of balls lost and so on.”
90 + 4’| 🟥#KC 0 : 4 #MS
— Kaizer Chiefs (@KaizerChiefs) November 2, 2024
Fulltime score: Kaizer Chiefs 0 : 4 Mamelodi Sundowns (Rayners. pen 14’, 22’, Shalulile 40’, Mudau 61’)#Amakhosi4Life #AlwaysHome #CarlingKnockout pic.twitter.com/U9uzY71wRm
Nabi said they should learn from the experience.
“Sundowns is a very good team with a lot of experience, but we believe that our players learn when they play against teams like this. Sometimes they make mistakes, but it doesn't make sense when you play against such a big club and in such a big atmosphere, then to be scared and to try to play a game that you’re not used to.
“It's with these kind of games, these kind of performances, that the young players are going to learn and are going to improve. We have chosen the way to play, based on the players that we have and to use their technical abilities. They are young, but they are skilful.
“Another thing is those young players need experienced players to help them to grow, and that is an area that we need to work on in the future,” Nabi added.