‘I missed a sitter on purpose’: Ex-Chiefs star admits sabotaging coach

The debate over Ashley Du Preez’s shocking miss for Kaizer Chiefs against AS Simba has taken an extraordinary turn, with a former Amakhosi striker admitting he once intentionally missed a scoring opportunity to spite his coach.

Phumlani ‘BMX’ Mkhize made the stunning revelation while attempting to explain Du Preez’s composure issues in the CAF Confederation Cup Second Preliminary Round first leg clash, which ended 0-0 at TP Mazembe Stadium in Lubumbashi.

The match was defined by frustrated attacking efforts, particularly from Chiefs. Khanyisa Mayo was denied by the crossbar, Ashley Du Preez missed a gilt-edged sitter into an open goal, and Mfundo Vilakazi forced the home keeper into a desperate, yet spectacular, save.

While Mkhize stopped short of accusing Du Preez of a deliberate miss, he opened the door to the psychological possibility.

“Sometimes a player may be unhappy with a coach who doesn’t value them enough… This can lead to a player not putting in their full effort for that coach,” he said as quoted by KickOff.com.

Mkhize then shocked fans by confirming he had committed such an act during his own playing days.

“I remember when I was at Chiefs, I once missed an easy chance on purpose, just to spite our coach, Muhsin Ertugral.

The incident, which he recalls occurring in a Cape Town fixture, involved deliberately heading wide after a cross from Jabu Pule (now Mahlangu). “The ball grazed the goalpost and went out,” he added.

Mkhize initially expressed shock at Du Preez’s recent miss, linking it potentially to the player’s personal grief over losing his father. However, the former marksman’s admission about his own calculated sabotage of a goal throws a controversial spotlight onto player-coach relationships at the highest level of South African football.