Junior Khanye – former Kaizer Chiefs star – has identified two players he believes that should be on top of the club's list of targets.
Chiefs are expected to unveil Given Msimango and Thatayaone Ditlhokwe among other new signings for the 2023/24 season after the two defenders were signed from TS Galaxy and SuperSport United respectively on pre-contracts.
However, Khanye feels that former Matsatsantsa defender Buhle Mkhwanazi should be another addition to the Amakhosi defence along with Andile Jali, who recently parted ways with Mamelodi Sundowns.
The Good
"I grew up at Kaizer Chiefs and what used to happen at the club was that the head coach would have a connection with what was happening in the development and that worked well for the team and quality players were produced. The late Ted Dumitru and Muhsin Ertugral when they were in charge at Chiefs used to organise friendly matches with the development. In doing that, they were up to date with what was happening in the development regarding the players who were ready for promotion and things like that. During our time in the development, we used to play friendly games with the first team on Wednesdays. There is still hope for Chiefs and things can still get back to normal for the club but there are things that need to be done to correct all the wrongs made in recent years. I know I said this and I say it again, Chiefs must swallow their pride and bring back Farouk Khan to their development to fix things there. Farouk produces players for overseas clubs and I don't understand why Chiefs can't be willing to bring on board a coach like that. Imagine Pitso (Mosimane) coaching Chiefs and Farouk working with the development, the club would excel. The club should try and sign Buhle Mkhwanazi to strengthen the defence and Andile Jali to protect the back four," said Khanye.
The Bad
"I have said this and I will say it again, for me several players at Kaizer Chiefs don't deserve to play for the club and only a few deserve to be there and Itumeleng Khune is one of them. It's just unfortunate that he hasn't been playing regularly. Chiefs seriously need to restructure and build the team around Khune and surround him with quality players. If you build a team with ordinary players, you will be an ordinary club," he said.
The Ugly
"A lot of players at Chiefs need to be released but unfortunately that won't be easy to happen because some of them have contracts with the club. Development is one of the areas that Chiefs need to focus much on because such a big club should be able to produce good players from its junior ranks. A lot has been said about the coach and I believe that Chiefs should have a different coach next season. The club needs a coach who will be allowed to sign players according to his philosophy. The head coach should be someone whose philosophy won't be different to that of the club's head of development. I don't blame Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos for not selecting players from Chiefs in his latest squad because none of them deserves to be there. Those players play for one of the biggest clubs in Africa and they get everything provided for them and the village in Naturena is one of the best you can find. One thing I always mention but people do not take me seriously about is that it's not just any player that can play for Chiefs. Players have been signed before as stars from their previous clubs but they didn't make it at Chiefs. Lebogang Manyama is one of those players. He won all the accolades at Cape Town City but he didn't make it at Chiefs. Siphelele Ntshangase had been a star at his previous clubs but he failed at Chiefs. Njabulo Ngcobo was the defender of the season in the league when he played for Swallows but he has failed at Chiefs. Having said that, I still believe that Ngcobo is a good player and is very smart and all that he needs is a coach who will understand how to use him," Khanye concluded.
Who Would You Like To See In Naturena In The New Season?
