“Kaizer Chiefs must repose confidence in local goalkeepers” – Khune

Photo Credit – Kaizer Chiefs Media.

Kaizer Chiefs legend Itumeleng Khune has urged the South African giants to repose confidence in the nation’s local talents in the area of goalkeeping.

Chiefs, who once ruled the domestic football, have struggled to find a reliable safest pair of hands since Khune’s golden years came to a close.

In a desperate bid to seal the gaping hole, Chiefs signed Rwandan goalkeeper Fiacre Ntwari. However, after a shaky start to the season, Bruce Bvuma replaced him and with almost one-third of the season now behind them.

Chiefs have conceded an overwhelming 29 goals in just 24 league matches with the team languishing in 15th place on the Betway Premiership table.

Speaking in an interview on the TimesLIVE YouTube channel, Khune believes the answer lies not just in the players, but in the coaching staff.

“What is happening at Chiefs is heart-breaking for any Chiefs fan, because this is not what we’re used to. Remember, if you look back, Chiefs have always produced great goalkeepers and you knew there’s a number one and number two was not far off from number one,” Khune said.

“But with the current generation, there’s a big gap, we lack goalkeeper coaches. Foreigners occupy the number one, what does it do for our national team? When Ronwen (Williams) is not fit, we struggle (only) now Sipho Chaine is coming into the picture,” he explained.

“You need a goalkeeper coach who is South African, who will push you to almost Ronwen’s level, that’s what used to happen at Chiefs. There was a season Brian Baloyi and Rowen Fernandez were rotating, competition was tight.

“After them, our generation, myself, Brilliant (Khuzwayo) and Reyaad Pieterse, we were not far off. The number one priority was clean sheets. The current generation, I don’t know what’s happening, if they’re pushing each other,” Khune added.