Kaizer Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter has aroused the eyes of the club’s supporters, not only for the promising performances the squad has put on show, but also for not deploying Njabulo Ngcobo.
Ngcobo is the lone new recruit who has yet to make his debut for the club. And this has agitated the supporters, who feel he is the answer to their issues in the rear.
When asked about this over two weeks ago, Baxter said Ngcobo would get his chance in about a month. However, with Amakhosi’s defensive flaws becoming the team’s Achilles heel, calls for Ngcobo have intensified.
This is what Ngcobo’s executives are concerned about, Phakaaathi has learned. “They are concerned that if his inclusion is forced upon him by his fans, it would shatter him. It would be ideal if the coach trusted him and gave him a chance because he has earned it,” a source close to the player stated.
Erick Mathoho and Daniel Cardoso are Baxter’s current center-back pairing, but despite playing together for nearly seven years, the duo has failed to impress this season.
When asked about the lack of fluidity amongst his defenders a few weeks ago, Baxter stated it was something he was working on and that it was a problem not just at Chiefs but throughout South African football.
[the_ad id=”2176″]When questioned about this in an interview a few years back, Cardoso stated he found it difficult to openly yell at his defensive partners. He stated that he and Lorenzo Gordinho had a wonderful relationship since they could yell and cuss at one other without anyone taking offense.
Mathoho is quieter and reserved and hardly says anything to either reprimand or advise his teammates on the field. This is why Baxter was expected to try a new partnership with Thabani Dube and Ngcobo. Dube did start alongside Mathoho and Cardoso, when Baxter fielded a back five against Mamelodi Sundowns on Sunday, but that didn’t really work either in a 2-0 defeat.
