Winning the Cup will not offset bad season, says Chiefs defender

Kaizer Chiefs defender Inácio Miguel insists that even ending their embarrassing nine-campaign trophy drought by lifting the Nedbank Cup would not compensate for their “bad season” in 2024-25.

The Chiefs centre back also suggested he will be forced to play with discomfort should he be fielded in Saturday’s cup final against Orlando Pirates at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban (3.30pm).

Amakhosi are decidedly out of form going into the final, having won one match in their past eight in all competitions, losing again in Saturday’s league derby against Pirates (2-1) at FNB Stadium. Their one win came in the Nedbank Cup, with Amakhosi’s 2-1 shock over Mamelodi Sundowns in their semifinal at Loftus Versfeld on April 13.

In the Premier Soccer League, Chiefs won once in 10 games and are wallowing in ninth place, a position in the top eight and even finishing better than last campaign’s worst ever 10th is not a certainty.

For the final, they will take hope that their form in the Cup has been better — Chiefs have scored 12 goals and conceded two in four games, seeing off not only Sundowns but also tough Stellenbosch FC in the quarterfinals.

Clearly Chiefs are fired up to make use of their last chance to avoid the ignominy of going a decade without silverware. .

A trophy would bring some reprieve for embattled coach Nasreddine Nabi, whose rebuilding project in his first season has not shown many signs of promise. 

Miguel, though, was candid in his view that it would not rescue the campaign.

“We have to be honest with ourselves that it was a bad season. I have to be honest with myself that I also had a bad season because I had a lot of goals I set for myself but I didn’t achieve them,” the defender said.

“I have to be honest and understand that if we win the cup on Saturday, it’s a big moment we’ll enjoy for sure, we’ll be very happy but we won’t forget the bad results we had during the season.

“This is a big club, it’s something else, it’s incomparable with anything else. There’s no bigger club in Africa than Chiefs, for sure. This is more than a club, this is a nation.”

Miguel has missed Chiefs’ past four games, albeit he remained an unused substitute in the past two, after he was substituted after a hamstring strain in Amakhosi’s 1-1 draw against TS Galaxy in Polokwane in early April.

The defender said he is undergoing late stages of rehabilitation but is ready to play Saturday’s Nedbank decider.

“I am more than ready for the final. It’s a final. You don’t have to think twice, even if you’re injured.

“I wanted to play in the Marumo game [Chiefs’ 2-1 home league defeat on April 26]. Of course it’s the injury that made me stop for three weeks.

“I came back last week. It was management by the coaches, they preferred to rest me. The yellow cards [Miguel is on three yellow cards and one away from a one-game suspension] may have had some effect on the decision.

“I am recovering, I am doing my rehab, but this week there’s no time for rehab, there’s no time for doctors. Don’t put me in the doctor’s room.

“I've told them I am going straight to the field to help the team.”

With other centre back choices Rushwin Dortley and Given Msimango out injured, Miguel is expected to partner Zitha Kwinika at the heart of Chiefs’ defence on Saturday.