Amakhosi in missed opportunity against SuperSport
Amakhosi in missed opportunity against SuperSport

Posted in Match Report, News, Team News on Feb 20, 2021.

20 February 2021

 

Kaizer Chiefs    (1) 1 (Frosler 29’)

SuperSport      (0) 1 (Grobler 68’, pen)

 

Kaizer Chiefs coach Gavin Hunt will reflect back on Saturday’s 1-1 DStv Premiership draw with SuperSport United wondering how his team did not pick up all three points in a game they dominated for large swathes and created a number of clear-cut goalscoring opportunities. Chiefs went ahead in the game in the 29th minute with a scintillating strike from Reeve Frosler. Their charge was held back when Bradley Grobler levelled matters from the penalty spot in the 68th minute.

Chiefs began the game sprightly and were on the front foot early on and it took two big blocks from Bongani Khumalo to stop Chiefs from going ahead. Most notably stopping a shot in the 17th minute from Leonardo Castro just in front of the goal line. After the Chiefs striker’s drive at goal had initially beaten Williams and Khumalo as the last line of defence was able to stop what seemed like Chiefs’ opening goal of the game.

In the 23rd minute, it was Chiefs who were clearing the ball off the line when a corner from the left by Jamie Webber was attacked by Evans Rusike, who managed to glance the ball with his across goal past Itumeleng Khune but Reeve Frosler was on the line to clear the ball away from danger. As Bradley Grobler was attacking the ball, Frosler’s quick thinking saw the danger averted.

A mix up between Webber and Onismor Bhasera saw the latter leave a pass back to him as he expected Ronwen Williams to clear the ball. It instead rolled out for a corner with Williams trying in vain to clear the ball. From the resulting corner from the right by Nkosingiphile Ngcobo, the ball was headed clear by Grobler and fell to Frosler on the left just outside the SuperSport 18-yard area. He did well to control the ball and pushed it past Rusike. As he entered the 18-yard area, Grobler tried to dispossess him, but he got the beating of him and then he struck the ball sweetly curling it with deadly accuracy around a stranded Brandon Williams to put Chiefs 1-0 up.

In the 35th minute, Khune managed to stop a rasping shot from distance by Grobler as he got his body behind the ball to stop the shot. Two minutes on, Anthony Akumu Agay did well to pick the ball off Rusike in a dangerous position after he had been fed into space by Bhasera. Chiefs had a go at goal themselves in the 38th minute with Ngcobo testing Williams with a well driven effort at goal from way out. The SuperSport keeper was able to pluck the ball out of the air and eventually managed to bring it under control.

In the third minute of referee’s added time at the end of the first half, Khune jumped up off his line to acrobatically tap Rusike’s headed effort a goal over for a corner, as Chiefs took a deserved 1-0 lead into the half time break.

Three minutes after the restart, Khune was at it again. A long ball from the right went over to the left where Siyabonga Ngezana was lurking, but he was not able to control it and Kudakwashe Mahachi crept up behind him to collect the loose ball and blasted it towards goal. By then Khune had come off his line, closed down the angles and managed to block the ball.

Just past the hour mark, the Chiefs keeper was at his best again as he managed to dive to his left and pushed a shot from around 22 yard out from Sipho Mbule out for a corner. Another demonstration that Khune growing in confidence. Chiefs lost Willard Katsande through a shoulder injury in the 64th minute. He was replaced by Daniel Cardoso.

In the 67th minute SuperSport were awarded a penalty after Agay pulled the shirt of Thamsanqa Gabuza. Grobler dispatched the spot kick sending Khune the wrong way as he dispatched the penalty to make the score 1-1. The penalty was converted in the 68th minute.

Chiefs were inches away from taking the lead in the 76th minute when Ngcobo sent in a free kick which Leonardo Castro attacked with his head but missed the ball. Gabuza attempted a headed clearance but missed the ball. It fell invitingly for Akumu who connected with the ball which saw Williams get a slight touch as hit went crashing against the up right and SuperSport managed to get rid of the loose ball.

Inside the final 10 minutes Cardoso managed to keep a long ball from Parker in and played it into the path of Njabulo Blom, who had time to line up his shot but instead went for a first-time drive and sent the ball wide of goal. With four minutes of regulation time to go, Ngezana did well to tee up Ngcobo who tried side-footing the ball home from close range. He had Williams leaping to his right to push the ball away with his right hand.

The game ended 1-1 with Chiefs ruing their missed opportunities knowing that this was a game they should have closed out and came away with all three points.

Amakhosi will now turn their attention to their CAF Champions League game against Horoya of Guinea on Tuesday at FNB Stadium.

 

Number of the match:

This was the 50th league meeting in the PSL era between the sides. SuperSport are the first team since 1996-97 that Chiefs have faced in 50 league games.

 

Fact of the match:

This was the first time since Chiefs final game of the 2018-19 season against Chippa United on the 11th May 2019 that Daniel Cardoso does not start a league game for Chiefs. He had started Amakhosi’s last 46 league games.

 

Most Valuable Player (MVP):

Frosler was Chiefs star man attacking and defending with a great sense of confidence and not being phased by the gamesmanship of the opposition. Khune showed composure making a number of telling saves. A confidence boosting performance for him. Ngcobo was an instrumental figure in midfield for Amakhosi - he was pulling the strings and showed shines of his abundance of talent.

 

Teams:

Chiefs:  Khune; Ngezana, Mphahlele ©, Agay, Frosler (Zulu 64’); Katsande (Cardoso 64’), Blom, Ngcobo, Parker; Castro, Nurković (Kambole 81’)

Subs not used:  Akpeyi; Sasman, Radebe, Baccus, Manyama

SuperSport: Williams ©; Khumalo; Bhasera, Ditlhokwe, Phillips; Mohomi (Mahachi 36’), Webber (Nhlapho 89’), Mbule, Lungu; Rusike (Gabuza 46’);  Grobler

Subs not used: Chigova; Kekana, Fleurs, Ndhondhi, Rayners, Manziba

 

What’s next?

Chiefs welcome Guinean outfit Horoya AC on Tuesday for a CAF Champions League encounter at the FNB Stadium at 18:00.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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