Itumeleng Khune piles pressure on Cedric Kaze and Khalil Ben Youssef 'Kaizer Chiefs need a recognised head coach' as Amakhosi's season spirals down

Kaizer Chiefs fans have been served heartbreak after heartbreak as the club has suffered four consecutive losses across all competitions.

The downward spiral also saw Amakhosi knocked out of the Nedbank Cup and the CAF Confederation Cup.

As the poor run continues, many are wondering whether the co-coaching structure is the right one for the Naturena heavyweights.

Others are questioning whether Cedric Kaze and Khalil Ben Youssef are the right coaches to be in charge of the club.

Chiefs' legendary goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune has said that his former club needs a recognisable coach in order for them to become a competitive outfit again.

“Chiefs need a recognised head coach. I remember during my playing days there were times when the coach would be sacked, and the assistants would take over, and some players had no respect for the assistant because an assistant is not like a head coach,” Khune said, as per Soccer Laduma.

“A head coach, you’ll find him too serious, and players will be scared of him. Assistants will be more lenient and joking with players, and then as soon as they take over as head coaches or co-coaches, players tend not to take them seriously.”

Many have argued that this style of hierarchy is not suitable for many clubs, as it is likely to bring confusion among the players. It is an argument that Khune seems to agree with.

“A team like Kaizer Chiefs should be having a head coach at all times, not an interim or co-coach, because you don’t know who to take instructions from," the former Bafana Bafana keeper said.

"When the head coach is there, you take instructions from one individual, but when you have two, you don’t know who to listen to, and you get confused as a player."

Meanwhile, according to Brian Baloyi, Chiefs' problems began when they parted ways with Nasreddine Nabi and elevated his assistants to take charge of the club until the end of the season.

“The biggest mistake Chiefs made when Nabi left, was this thing of co-coaches. It has never worked; Chiefs tried it before with Doctor and Ace, and looking back at that time, it was necessary because it was a short period," Baloyi argued.

“Sundowns tried it for a very long time, but in the end, you can’t have two drivers driving the same car at the same time.

“Even if you have a 14-tonne truck that goes transporting [products], if there are two drivers, the other one will take a break, and the other one will drive," added the former Bafana custodian.

“At the end of the day, this is football, and then you have co-coaches. At some point, there are egos, and at some point, players get confused with different messages. Players take instructions from the leader, and it’s clear there’s a leadership challenge at Chiefs at the moment.”

Amakhosi will have a chance to end the winless run on February 15 when they will tackle Durban City.