Chiefs triumph with Sirino’s brilliance and Ntwari’s saves
Kaizer Chiefs' foreign legion, Rwandan Fiacre Ntwari and Uruguayan Gastón Sirino, provided the anchor for the emphatic 4-0 victory over SuperSport United at New Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Saturday night.
Sirino was named Player of the Match after imposing himself on the match with a livewire box-to-box performance as he spearheaded the team's attacking sorties. He opened the scoring with a grass cutter that left United keeper Ricardo Goss high and dry.
Later, he produced an assist for Yusuf Maart's goal, and Chiefs enjoyed a commanding 2-0 lead. Like Sirino, Ntwari earned the praises of Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi after the match. It was Chiefs' first clean sheet of the season.
Nabi sang Sirino's praises and felt the Uruguayan is still to hit peak form this season.
“Indeed, it is true Sirino has indeed helped us today," said Nabi.
"We thank him for that but today he was not at maximum fitness. He is coming back from an injury. He hasn’t trained much in the past few days.
“We know when he returns to his full capacity, you will see much more of him. We know the younger players can learn a lot from him.”
Nabi said goalkeeper Ntwari played a match-winning role with many important saves during the game.
“It’s a good thing that we won, and it is a good victory, but we must congratulate Fiacre. He made some saves to allow us to get back to the game," said Nabi.
“In the critical moments of the game, he showed up, but let me add the outcome was the work of the entire team – all the players on the pitch.”
Thank you Khosi Family ❤️✌️ #Amakhosi4Life #AlwaysHome #CarlingKnockout pic.twitter.com/j5RuqhArbF
— Kaizer Chiefs (@KaizerChiefs) October 20, 2024
During the match, Chiefs fans were calling for their Limpopo homeboy Ranga Chivaviro to be benched, but Nabi persisted with the player, and he scored a goal in the 73rd minute. Chivaviro plays as the lone striker in the team's 4-2-3-1 playing pattern.
“Sometimes, it is not easy for a striker, but it’s football,” said Nabi, as he reflected on the crowd's first-half whistling to prompt Chivaviro’s substitution.
“I don’t need to have an emotional reaction like the fans. It is my responsibility to support my players. I promised him he would score and thank you he scored.”
Although he was delighted that Chiefs are advancing to the Carling Knockout quarter-finals, he felt the team did not always deal adequately with SuperSport's attacking threat.
“I don’t think that in the overall 90 minutes, we had a good performance," said Nabi. "There were moments where we allowed the opponents to get wide balls, to get in goalmouth crosses.
“But, with a cup game, you don’t play it (with attractive football). You just need to win it because it’s a cup game.”
Nabi said the players were inspired by the birthday of Chiefs chairman Kaizer Motaung.
"Everyone wanted to offer him this victory," said Nabi. "We wanted to offer this performance to him because he has sacrificed a lot for this team. He has given a lot to this team. We need him to go forward.
“What made the difference in this game is the mental strength to stay in the game, even at critical moments."
Chiefs will face SuperSport United again in their next match on Saturday. This time, however, it will be a Premiership clash.