Kaizer Chiefs’ decline: How the Glamour Boys lost their shine and how they can rebuild

ANOTHER football season, another barren campaign for Kaizer Chiefs. What’s new as the one-time Glamour Boys of South African football continue to slip towards the edge of the abyss?

Well, with Amakhosi still in the Nedbank Cup, where they will meet Mamelodi Sundowns in the semi-final, there is a chance they might win something this season. But given the opposition and their recent record against them, that chance can well be described as slim to none — with slim having already left town.

But how did it come to this?

How is it that the club that was once the epitome of success – the club that all others looked up to as the model of professionalism; the club that set the trend for the rest to follow — has become so ordinary that they have now gone a decade without a trophy?

The general feeling is that Chiefs lost their lustre when founder and chairman Kaizer Motaung decided to let his children run the club. First-born son Bobby Motaung came under fire for his failure to buy quality players, as he relied on acquiring free agents or unwanted players at little to no cost.

The Chiefs faithful called for his head, and Motaung Senior essentially pandered to their whims — promoting his younger son, Kaizer Junior, to the role of sporting director and leaving him to handle all football decisions.

That has not really worked. Chiefs continue to flounder season after season under Kaizer Jr leading fans to once again lament the old man’s decision to keep a distance from the running of the club. Incredibly, the Motaung children insist their father is still hands-on — guiding and advising them as they prepare to run the club without him.

Yet, the Chiefs of the past decade do not seem to bear even a fingerprint of 'Chincha Guluva' — at least not the passionate Bra K, who used to walk into the dressing room to remind his players that it was his name on the line in the media, and they had better not tarnish it. The Kaizer Chiefs of the last 10 years have not resembled the Kaizer Motaung-sides with handpicked players based on their suitability to the Glamour Boys’ ways.

In recent years, the Chiefs jersey has been cheapened, as just about anyone can wear it — unlike in the past, when we all knew that only especially talented players got to don the gold and black kit.

For me, I’d say Chiefs’ fall from grace can be traced back to the time when Motaung hired German coach Ernst Middendorp. He brought to the club a coach with no style, one who played robotic football — a far cry from Amakhosi’s flamboyant and winning ways made famous by Motaung himself when he coached the club in its early years, as well as by the likes of Mario Tuani, Jeff Butler, Augusto Palacios, and Ted Dumitru.

Granted, Bra K brought in some coaches whose credentials and suitability to leading the club left much to be desired. But such was the quality of players at the club back then that the team still managed to retain its identity.

There are those who claim that Chiefs were efficient under Middendorp, as they challenged for honours, but the German robbed the club of their soul and style. It has been downhill ever since. Even when they won the league title under Stuart Baxter, Chiefs had long ceased to be the country’s glamour side that won with flair.

They might not admit it, but Chiefs are not going to return to their glory days until Motaung Sr realises that he needs to inject some experience into the club’s technical department. And as much as they are a family business, the reality is that none of the Motaung children have the experience or technical know-how to lead the club back to glory.

Motaung needs to consider bringing in a few former players who have served the club in the past and understand the Chiefs DNA — not only to assist with player recruitment but also in the coaching department.

Good as Nabi might be, the fact that he has no ‘Chiefs man’ in his technical team contributes to his failure to deliver the success he was brought in for. South African players are a unique bunch, best understood by their compatriots, and a technical team without local expertise is unlikely to succeed.

Chiefs need an overhaul in all respects, and the sooner Motaung gets on with it, the quicker this freefall into the abyss will be stopped.