Pule Mmodi's former development coach has told Kaizer Chiefs to switch the player to a new role because 'he is not giving them what they want'

Pule Mmodi has been playing as a left winger for Kaizer Chiefs, a position he has struggled to thrive in since arriving at Naturena in July 2023 from Golden Arrows.

He has scored four goals across all competitions in each of the last two seasons he has been with the Soweto giants.

In his first term at Amakhosi, he also contributed four assists but his former coach at the Free State Stars' feeder team, David Vilakazi, feels the speedy player is best as a number 10 and not a wide man.

"As a winger, he is not giving them what they want because he doesn’t have crosses in him, he doesn’t deliver crosses with his left," said Vilakazi as per KickOff. 

"At the top level, goals come from crosses, but maybe that is not how the Chiefs coaches want to play.  Coaches have their own preferences in the way they set up their teams, and I don’t know what they expect out of him. 

"At Arrows, he excelled playing as a number 10 because he scores goals, assists, and knows how to break the lines playing closer to the number nine.

"I prefer him as a 10. Out on the left, he can’t cross the ball but can take players on," added the former Platinum Stars coach. 

"The way they play him is that they want him to cut in from the left, but I’m not sure what return they will get from him playing him that way. 

"I don’t know why they are playing him on the left when he doesn’t have a left foot for crosses. I’m only looking from a distance in my analysis, but I have never seen him cross with his left foot. 

"If they can play him as a number 10, then they will get great results out of him. He can go forward, but crossing the ball from the left wing is something that I have never seen from him," he continued.

"This is just my opinion at the end of the day, plus I don’t work with him every day at training. Maybe they want a winger to take players on and then only cut in without providing a cross."  

Pule's struggles are, however, not peculiar to him, but other players as well who arrive at Amakhosi already on top of their game only to lose form.

The likes of Khama Billiat, Ranga Chivaviro, Njabulo Ngcobo, Thatayaone Ditlhokwe, Keagan Dolly and Yusuf Maart were signed by Chiefs as hot properties but struggled to make an impact at the club. 

Some of these players even lost their places in the Bafana Bafana setup after joining Chiefs.

That might be a reflection that there is an underlying problem that needs to be solved at the club to help the players continue with the rich vein of form they arrive with.

Smarting from being booted out of the Carling Knockout after a penalty shootout with Stellenbosch, it is a setback Chiefs could have done without as their strong start to the season has dissipated and now cost them the chance at a trophy. 

Mmodi is, however, one of the most experienced players in the squad and will be expected to help Amakhosi show their character as they compete both on the domestic scene and in Africa.