‘It buys you a month of happiness’: Kaze eyes Soweto Derby win to quieten critics

The Soweto Derby has a unique gravity, one that can pull a season out of a tailspin or bury it under the weight of expectation. For Kaizer Chiefs co-coach Cedric Kaze, Saturday’s showdown at a sold-out FNB Stadium is about more than just three points—it is about the “emotional economy” of survival at Naturena.

Coming off a brutal fortnight that saw Amakhosi exit the CAF Confederation Cup in Egypt against Zamalek and suffer a midweek league defeat to Stellenbosch FC, Kaze is well aware that the “wounded lion” narrative only holds weight if the team produces a result.

The “Happiness” Currency For Kaze and Chiefs in Soweto Derby

Speaking at the pre-match press conference at the Nasrec Expo Centre on Thursday, Kaze was strikingly candid about what a victory over Orlando Pirates would mean for a coaching staff currently feeling the heat.

“The Derby is a spicy occasion… you want to do as much as you can because you know, in as much as we don’t want to say it, but it buys you at least a month of happiness with the fans,” Kaze admitted.

It was a rare moment of honesty that captured the reality of coaching in Soweto. A derby win acts as a buffer, a “grace period” that can quieten the noise and restore a sense of belief, even when the broader long-term plans are stuttering.

Defying the Debutant Curse in Soweto Derby

For Kaze, the stakes are deeply personal. While he has been part of the technical team as an assistant to Nasreddine Nabi in previous derbies, this marks his first time sharing the full weight of responsibility at the helm.

Across the technical area stands another newcomer, Abdeslam Ouaddou, who is facing the same daunting reality. History has rarely been kind to coaches making their debut in this Soweto Derby fixture, a fact Kaze has already begun to investigate.

“I would need to go back and do research and find out why many coaches haven’t won the Derby on debut,” he noted. “We just need to be honest. We as Kaizer Chiefs are going to give it everything we have… It’s the performance that’s going to give us a positive result.”

Chiefs head into the 184th league edition of the derby sitting in fourth place, eight points adrift of Pirates (who have a game in hand). A loss would all but extinguish any lingering title hopes and leave the technical team facing a long, cold March.

However, a win would not only bridge the gap to their rivals but also provide the psychological “reset” the club desperately needs after back-to-back 2-1 losses.

For Kaze and the Glamour Boys, Saturday isn’t just a Soweto Derby game—it’s an opportunity to purchase some much-needed peace. In Soweto, victories don’t solve everything, but they buy time. And right now, that is the most valuable currency at Naturena.