Kaizer Chiefs head coach Arthur Zwane has explained Njabulo Blom’s return to the Amakhosi starting XI.
Blom, 22, returned to the starting XI for the first time since Chiefs 4-0 defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns but was deployed as a No.6 in midfield rather than as a right-back.
There has been a tussle over Blom’s future, with his agent Rob Moore coming out to explain both sides had hit a road block in recent talks over a contract extension.
Around the same time, Blom dropped to the bench and even out of the squad, but on Saturday he returned in the 2-1 win over SuperSport United.
“There is no doubt, Njabulo is a talented player. He is a work horse in the midfield,” Zwane told reporters.
“When he is ready, we will always give him the opportunity but like I said there is competition for places. We had Nange doing well, we had Yusuf doing very well, we had Sithebe doing well as well.”
Zwane, though, also explained that his side expected a midfield battle against SuperSport and hence put Blom in the deep-holding position.
“But for this game we thought we needed someone like Njabulo, so in another game he might sit on the bench if we need a more offensive players.
“Today, we knew it was going to be a midfield battle and we needed to win, we needed stability, win the battle and be able to play as well, to come out of tight situations.
“I think he did extremely well and not only him, Yusuf and Sithebe as well. You could see it was the end of the game, you could see Sithebe ran out of gas and had to be substituted.
“So there is competition for places, we give every individual that deserves to play [a chance], because we play the way we train. I’m happy for him as well for the fact that he performed very well today.”
Overall, Blom has made 87 appearances for the Glamour Boys so far.
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