Kaizer Chiefs coach Fernando da Cruz expressed regret over two main reasons that led to his team's defeat against Orlando Pirates in the derby held on Saturday in Soweto. Nevertheless, he was satisfied with his team's initial performance.
Chiefs lost to Pirates with a score of 2:1 at the FNB Stadium, extending their losing streak against their fierce rivals to seven matches—six losses and one draw in this series. This result also prolonged Amakhosi's current winless streak in the championship to four games.
The derby loss increased the pressure on da Cruz, who had previously managed to ease some tension by defeating TS Galaxy 3:0 in the Round of 16 of the Carling Cup on Tuesday. This victory followed public support from Kaizer's sports director, Motun Jr.
Speaking at a press conference after the match, the Frenchman appeared dejected when explaining what went wrong, directly pointing to the officiating by Luksollo Badi and shortcomings of his own team.
Da Cruz stated: 'The match analysis is very simple—the match should have ended in the first half for two reasons: we lacked efficiency—we should have been leading 2:0 or 3:0 in the first half, and secondly, Pirates played with ten men, not eleven.'
He then elaborated on the referee's decisions. 'The first goal (scored by Yanela Mbutuma) was offside, and then a Pirates player should have received a second yellow card and consequently a red. Usually, we should have played 11 against 10, not 11 against 11.'
After Chiefs controlled the first half—a period during which Pirates coach Abdeslam Waddu admitted his initial tactics were flawed—da Cruz explained why Chiefs sharply reduced their tempo after the break.
'In the second half, we became less dangerous in the game,' admitted da Cruz. 'We finished the last 30 minutes tired, and we could have conceded three more goals. But it wasn't because of chances created by Pirates; it was because of fatigue. However, I was satisfied with the overall play.'
Chiefs' error rate is rapidly declining. They will need a quick response in the Carling Cup quarter-finals against Siwelele next week, as further slip-ups in the league could jeopardize the season in the Betway Premiership and Nedbank Cup.
Although da Cruz insists they can still change the course of their championship, the 11-point deficit to the leader makes this prospect increasingly difficult unless he resolves the issue of the sharp decline in the squad's second-half performance.