Who can fix the dire situation at Chiefs? Sheppard answers

When Kaizer Chiefs assistant coach Dillon Sheppard attempted to deliver a message to the club’s faithful, his demeanour was that of a defeated man and at a loss for words.

Sheppard, who is under fire along with his head coach Arthur Zwane, admitted that it is stressful to address Amakhosi’s furious supporters at this point in time.

But he did reveal who can fix the dire situation at the club as the Soweto giants’ trophy drought stretched to eight years.

Chiefs lost out on all the trophies on offer this season, with the most recent one being the Nedbank Cup, where they lost to Orlando Pirates in the semi-finals a fortnight ago.

According to Sheppard, the below-par display by Amakhosi is not for lack of trying.

“It is very difficult,” he said following the 1-0 defeat to SuperSport United at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in a DStv Premiership clash.

The loss, Chiefs’ 11th of the season in the league, did not sit well with the supporters as it meant the club also missed out on continental football next season.

KAIZER CHIEFS COACHES UNDER FIRE

Shortly after the referee blew the final whistle, the fans showed no ‘Love and Peace’ as they threw missiles at their team en route to the dressing room.

Zwane, who had to be escorted by the police at Royal Bafokeng, was hit by a bottle beneath his eye. He had to get medical attention. As a result, he couldn’t pitch up for post-match interviews with Sheppard on duty.

In February, a section of the club’s supporters urged the management to fire Zwane. After Chiefs’ 3-2 loss to Golden Arrows at the Peter Mokaba Stadium, fans chanted, “Arthur must go! Arthur must go! Arthur must go!” at the Peter Mokaba Stadium.

Since then, things have seemingly gone from bad to worse, with Zwane’s health at risk due to Chiefs’ angry fans.

“You put in the work, and of course, you want to show in performances, and they [fans] come out in their numbers, and they are not happy with what they saw,” added Sheppard.

“It is only us that can make it [club’s situation] right. We have to be positive in times like this. It is easy to look at the negatives. But we have to draw energy from the positives. And like I said, we still have a fourth place to play for. So we have to look forward to that.

“We’ve got our last game now, and it is at home in front of our fans. We need to show that we really want to get the fourth place.”

Chiefs, in fourth place are set to host Cape Town City in their last game of the season. The game will be staged at FNB Stadium on Saturday, 20 May 2023.

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