Chiefs Kaze lauds Maboe’s ‘amazing football IQ’

‘He is a hard worker, it is a very good thing to have him,’ said the Chiefs co-head coach.

Kaizer Chiefs co-head coach Cedric Kaze has praised the versatility of Lebohang Maboe ahead of Amakhosi’s Nedbank Cup last 32 clash with Stellenbosch FC at the Cape Town Stadium tomorrow.

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The former Sundowns attacking midfielder joined Chiefs at the end of August, but injury problems hampered his initial progress. This year, however, the 31 year old has been prominent as Amakhosi have won four games in a row in all competitions.

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He has been particularly important as Chiefs have revived their Caf Confederation Cup Group D campaign with consecutive victories over Zambia’s Zesco United.

“Maboe has an amazing football IQ, he can play as a 6, 8 or 10,” said Kaze.

“He can even play as a winger because he knows how to find the half spaces. He is accurate in front of the box, and has a very good shot.

“He is a hard worker, it is a very good thing to have him and he adds experience to our Confederation Cup squad. He is able to advise the younger players and all his teammates.”

Chiefs did beat Stellenbosch 3-1 away from home in their Betway Premiership opener, but were beaten on penalties by the Cape Winelands side in the Carling Knockout last 16.

Kaze feels Chiefs were the better side even in that game in October, but is not thinking about this as a revenge match.

He is also well aware that Stellenbosch now have a new head coach in former Amakhosi mentor Gavin Hunt.

Kaze – ‘It is not about revenge’

“Stellenbosch have a new coach who has been in the league for so many years with great achievements and big experience,” he added.

“He has reshuffled the team a bit but we are Chiefs and we want to go as far as we can in defending this trophy.

“That starts with Wednesday’s game. We will go in and do all we can to get a positive result.

“It is true they beat us in the Carling Knockout. I thought we were the better team, we controlled the game and had many opportunities to score, but lost on penalties.

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“That is the beauty of these games, you can play very little but expect big rewards.

“It is not about revenge .. this is another game we need to build for thoroughly and will try to put in a good performance. The pressure is there, outside of being champions, a club like Chiefs has pressure on it on a daily basis. That is what comes with the badge.”