Mduduzi Shabalala of Kaizer Chiefs celebrates his goal with teammates during the Betway Premiership match against Magesi FC at the New Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Wednesday night.
Image: BackpagePix
KAIZER Chiefs co-coach Khalil Ben Youssef believes his side is ready to go all the way and finish in the "best position possible", which translates to winning all their remaining matches.
Chiefs have seven games remaining, meaning there are 21 points still to fight for on top of the 45 they reached after drubbing Magesi 4-1 at the Peter Mokaba Stadium on Wednesday night.
“From the start of the season, we’ve always said that the performances were there; it was just that we missed a lot of chances, and then we were also very unlucky with injuries,” said Ben Youssef.
“Now the squad is ready, the competition is there. We missed some chances, but then again, we scored four goals. We are so happy with the performances of the players.”
Calamity in the Magesi defence handed Chiefs their fifth straight Betway Premiership win of the season.
Early on at Peter Mokaba Stadium, it was two shots on target and two goals for Chiefs via the boots of Flávio Da Silva (33 minute) and Wandile Duba (37), leaving Magesi skipper and goalkeeper Elvis Chipezeze gesturing with disappointment at his defence.
For the second goal, however, Chipezeze was equally culpable; he missed the clearance and collided with his own defenders, leaving the ball rolling towards Duba, who slotted home.
Chiefs' third came from Mduduzi Shabalala in the 62nd minute. While Diteboho Mofokeng pulled one back for Magesi six minutes later, Khanyisa Mayo slotted Amakhosi’s fourth of the night — and his first of 2026 — in the 83rd minute.
“I am happy that we fought and got the three points, but primarily I am happy with the mentality, character, and performance of the players,” said Ben Youssef. “We have a big squad for a big team ... and the good news is that all players are now ready to work for the team and give us what we ask of them.”
The way Magesi handled that first half, it is no wonder that after 24 games they are staring relegation in the face; they currently anchor the bottom of the table with only 17 points.
“There are still matches, but yes, we are panicking. Matches are running out. We fixed the goal-scoring part, but now the defence is a problem,” said Magesi coach Allan Freese.
Right now, Chiefs are "hot property", with the likes of Da Silva, Shabalala, Siphesihle Ndlovu, and Lebogang Maboe dishing out top-shelf performances.
It remains a pity, however, that this run of form comes after Amakhosi have been knocked out of all three cup competitions and lost significant ground to rivals Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates in the title race.
With their newfound form, they will be looking at a third-place finish — which would guarantee them continental football — with genuine optimism. One can only wonder how far this winning run will stretch, and if it will be enough to influence the Chiefs management to retain co-coaches Cedric Kaze and Khalil Ben Youssef.
Chiefs supporters will be hoping Da Silva quickly recovers after he was substituted at half-time for on-loan Khanyisa Mayo, who has struggled for form since arriving at Chiefs. The last time Chiefs won five matches in the league was during the 2019/20 season, when they went on to win eight in a row.