Bartlett backing Zwane for Chiefs’ head coach position

Kaizer Chiefs legend Shaun Bartlett says it depends on the club’s management to select Arthur Zwane as a permanent head coach while he says the club has brought foreign coaches but it didn’t work out.

“It is up to the club on whether they see him as the right man, but they’ve tried every foreign coach but it hasn’t worked and I can’t say too much on why it hasn’t,” Bartlett told the media in Durban.

“They have to make sure they rebuild because they haven’t won anything for some time – six or seven years. They have changed coaches five to six times, but have the same players. They need to change something.”

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Bartlett has also been part of the Glamour Boys’ rough patch after he was appointed as an assistant coach to Ernst Midderndorp in 2018. They were both shown the exit door when they lost the league to Mamelodi Sundowns in 2020 on the last matchday of the season.

“Right or wrong it was a club decision. You have to leave with that and move on, that is what I’ve done. We took the team to another level from finishing ninth to lose the league on the second day, but that’s not us to decide. Club and management decides, and I respect that,” he added.

Motaung Jnr says Zwane is one coach who understands Chiefs

Chiefs sporting director Kaizer Motaung Jnr also seems to be convinced that ‘10111’ can lead Amakhosi after he threw his support behind him. “If there is a coach who understands Kaizer Chiefs’ philosophy, it is Arthur Zwane,” Motaung Jnr. told VM Sports.

“If there is a coach who understands modern football and who has a blueprint on how to bring the best out of quick, dynamic, youthful and attack-minded football, it is coach Arthur Zwane. It’s no secret that he has served this club with high aplomb as a player and has an understanding of the pressures that come with it… He has an amazing character, he is a great leader and he is a person who understands what this club needs.

“Having said that, this is a time where we are in a recovery and rebuilding mode and that takes many components so we are giving coach Arthur and coach Dillon all the support they need to make sure that they can achieve what they need to towards the end of the season.

“But, everyone knows in football, if you want to make effective change, you need time, you need patience and you need structure and, personally, for me, I think coach Arthur has gained as much experience and knowledge, and he has an amazing passion to drive this club.

“I know that the club, the chairman and the members of the board will all be sitting down, not just talking about this one specific role, but about the bigger project that we have to undergo. It is an honour and a big privilege to be able to work with coach Arthur Zwane and coach Dillon Sheppard.”