Itumeleng Khune slams Nasreddine Nabi's underperforming Kaizer Chiefs side - 'There’s no distinct leadership'

In their last Premier Soccer League outing in the Premier Soccer League, Kaizer Chiefs and Royal AM shared the spoils.

The Soweto giants scored two goals in the first half, but their visitors fought back to register a 2-2 draw at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane.

Coach Nasreddine Nabi blamed his players for what he felt was a 'lack of professionalism' against Thwihli Thwahla.

He argued his team had what it takes to control the game and ensure they claimed maximum points after beating Richards Bay 2-1 in the previous outing on the same venue.

However, legendary goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune believes his former team lacks leadership and were badly exposed against Royal AM.

"All I can say is that there has been a structure and coach Nabi came with his own philosophy. But obviously, Kaizer Chiefs also has a way of doing things, and obviously, the two parties came together, and they said let's pull towards one direction, which is to take the club back to where it belongs, which is winning trophies and winning matches," The 37-year-old told SNL24.

"But again, it's not going to be easy when there’s no distinct leadership on the field – and I think that was Chiefs’ wake-up call this past weekend to say you've played against Magesi, you had a lead and you gave it away. Didn't you learn from that?

"But I feel Kaizer Chiefs players should have handled the game better by applying game management skills because when leading 2-0, you have to definitely shut the back door and make sure that you protect the lead. So, leadership is what was lacking. They needed someone to take charge and say, ‘you know what, we can't afford to throw away a 2-0 lead'

"In the long run, Kaizer Chiefs can't afford to be dropping points when they should be collecting, you know. Because the way the league is so tight, you lose one match and you find yourself out of the top eight in position 13 or 14," Khune continued.

"Whereas, if you win one match, you find yourself in the top eight. So, these clubs cannot afford for the gaps to be too big and start realising that they need to start picking up points towards the end of the season."

On Sunday, Amakhosi will play their third match in Polokwane, but at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium against their hosts Polokwane City.

It will be a tough fixture but Nabi, who is set to welcome defender Inacio Miguel back from suspension, will be going for nothing less than a win to boost Chiefs' chances of finishing in the top positions by the end of the ongoing campaign.