Orlando Pirates head coach Abdelslam Waddu believes that Kaizer Chiefs is moving in the right direction under the guidance of its current technical team and called on the club to give them time to implement their football philosophy.
Despite leading Pirates to a 2-1 victory in the Soweto Derby at FNB Stadium on Saturday, the French-Moroccan expressed admiration for the work being done by his French colleague Fernando da Cruz at Naturena FC.
Waddu believes that Chiefs has assembled a talented squad, especially among young players, and insists that they should not be excluded from the Betway Premiership title race.
He stated: 'Watching the game from the outside, this Kaizer Chiefs technical team is doing excellent work. We must allow them to work and implement their playing model.' He continued: 'These guys at Chiefs have a very good team with very good young players, and in my opinion, they are on the right track, and we do not need to exclude them from the title race. It is a big club with big fans, and this technical team is doing an excellent job.'
Waddu's comments offer an interesting perspective from a rival coach, especially after Pirates secured a victory in one of the most intense matches of the national calendar.
'Chiefs' showed glimpses of their attacking potential in the first half of the match, creating several chances and possibly having enough opportunities to take a convincing lead before halftime. However, the inability to capitalize on these opportunities allowed Pirates to stay in the game before Thsepang Moremi scored the decisive goal in the 55th minute.
The task for Chiefs now is to turn these encouraging spells into consistent performances and results as they strive to close the gap on the leading teams. Meanwhile, Waddu believes that Chiefs possesses enough quality in its squad and coaching structure to remain in the title conversation.