Kaizer Chiefs coach fails to lead Amajimbos to junior Afcon qualification after loss to Zambia, criticizes VAR decisions: 'Maybe it needs review, we played 65 minutes in the first half.'

South Africa U-17's dream of qualifying for the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations ended after a 2-1 defeat to Zambia in the COSAFA U-17 semi-final at AW Muller Stadium in Johannesburg.

The team featured promising talents, including Cape Town City's Emile Witbooi, who recently impressed during an assessment at Chelsea.

Despite Witbooi's standout performance, the squad fell short.

Coach Vela Khumalo expressed frustration with how the introduction of VAR disrupted the game’s flow, claiming it affected the team’s momentum and overall performance.

“A good idea to have [VAR] but I think with time maybe it needs to be controlled the way it takes time it breaks the momentum and for eight minutes, we need to pause again. Maybe it needs to be looked at because I calculated in the first half we played for 65 minutes,” Khumalo said as reported by Sowetan.

“Only for the first half and it breaks the momentum that the boys have. But I'm not blaming it, we must have used it at the right time. I think it must start with the tournament players getting used to it. We need to improve on it honestly.”

“It's very painful; I remember when we played in Zambia the last time, I was coaching the U-17; we won the game and we were supposed to go to Afcon and then Covid-19 happened,” he added.

“So, now we are at a stage where I was hopeful, I thought we would go there and this is how we lost it. It's very painful, but it's football we need to move on.”

“I don't remember Zambia coming to us and posing any threat. I think it was once or twice where they created a goal and a penalty. Other than that we kept to what we have been doing throughout and kept possession playing according to our philosophy.”

With emerging stars like Emile Witbooi, Maraletsi Kamohelo, Stevens Selwyn, and Bohloko Neo, South Africa's junior team has potential. However, the failure to qualify raises concerns about whether the youth structures are equipping players to compete among the continent's elite.

Questions linger about their ability to dominate African competitions despite the undeniable individual talent within the team.

Coach Vela Khumalo will return to Kaizer Chiefs to oversee the club's DDC side. The team is currently second on the log, in close contention with reigning champions Stellenbosch.

Khumalo's focus will now shift to maintaining their strong league form and continuing the development of young talent within the Chiefs’ setup.