ZITHA Kwinika says the Kaizer Chiefs faithful must expect a highly-improved team from the one they witnessed last season when Amakhosi take on Asante Kotoko in the Toyota Cup at the weekend.
Highly disappointing until they won the Nedbank Cup, Chiefs had a rather forgetful league campaign that sees them missing out on participation in the MTN8 for a second season running.
But they are intent on exciting their die-hard followers as early as on Saturday at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium when they host the one-time Ghanaian giants to set the scene for what is to come.
Smashed 4-0 by Tanzania’s Young Africans last year, Amakhosi are eager to ensure the trophy remains home this time around. And defender Kwinika believes their pre-season tour of the Netherlands has helped turn them into an improved lot.
“The supporters must expect a different us in the Toyota Cup,” he said in an interview with the club’s media department.
“We are growing as a group from where we left last season. We are adding blocks from that and from the pre-season we went through we really learnt a lot. We are going to be different.”
Kwinika is excited that they are getting the opportunity to play opposition from the continent as this will help them get ready for their participation in the CAF Confederation Cup, for which they qualified courtesy of their victory in the Nedbank Cup.
“The Toyota Cup is where we are going to test ourselves against our African brothers as we are preparing ourselves for CAF, so it is still all in building block stage.”
Kwinika feels he has personally grown from the Dutch experience.
“It was good for me, but the thing in football is that it is not mainly about me. To do well, I need my teammates. Personally, I got a lot of fitness from it.
“As a team it was important how we sync and bringing the other (new) players into the team and it was a great one for the group at large. The Netherlands was good to us, we learnt a lot and we definitely came back home as better players and better people.”
The 31-year-old says playing against teams of a much higher level will stand them in good stead for the upcoming domestic campaign.
“To be honest, the level is a bit high (in the Netherlands). Football is football yes, but they understand moments very well; they know the right time to press and where to press,” he said.
“The passing is precise and how they keep the ball is different from the way we keep it. While here at home we dribble around, they dribble you with a pass. And the seconds they spend on the ball are minimal but effective.”
While Chiefs won a single match of their five outings in Holland, Kwinika – like the rest of Chiefs at Naturena – believe the tour was a success.
“We did well because we gradually grew as a team from the first game to the last game and the boys felt good and the confidence is high now.”
That confidence, he says, will be evident on Saturday.
