Kaizer Chiefs head coach Fernando Da Cruz has responded to the club’s clear demand for success after football manager Bobby Motaung publicly set the bar for the new campaign.
Motaung has made it clear that Chiefs are not simply looking for improvement under their new coach. The Amakhosi want silverware, the Betway Premiership title and a return to their glory days.
But while the expectations at Naturena are high, Da Cruz is choosing to keep his attention firmly on the job in front of him.
MOTAUNG MAKES CHIEFS’ EXPECTATIONS CLEAR
Kaizer Chiefs ended their long trophy drought by winning the Nedbank Cup in June 2025, but the club’s ambitions extend far beyond a single piece of silverware.
Motaung recently made the club’s expectations for Da Cruz clear, insisting that the French coach understands the importance of challenging for major honours.
“The new coach obviously knows he has to win the league,” Motaung told FARPost.
“He has to win cups; he has to bring the glory days back.”
The football manager also stressed that the club would continue looking at potential reinforcements if suitable opportunities arise in the transfer market.
According to Motaung, Chiefs will back the coach when the right player becomes available, provided the signing makes sense financially, fits within the squad and is wanted by the technical team.
DA CRUZ REFUSES TO MAKE BIG PROMISES
Despite Motaung’s trophy demands, Da Cruz is not getting drawn into making guarantees about what Chiefs will achieve at the end of the season.
The 54-year-old believes predicting trophies before the campaign has unfolded would be unrealistic.
“I’m not a magician like a reporter. I cannot say what we will achieve,” Da Cruz said.
Instead, the Chiefs coach wants his players to remain focused on discipline, hard work and following the team’s tactical approach.
For Da Cruz, success will be built through the performances that come before the final league table or cup celebrations.
‘OUR FIRST AMBITION IS ALWAYS TO WIN THE NEXT GAME’
Da Cruz insists there is no shortage of ambition inside the Chiefs camp.
However, rather than looking too far ahead, the coach wants his squad to concentrate on collecting results one match at a time.
“If we are in a good position, we’ll try to achieve as best as we can,” he explained.
“We are very ambitious, but our first ambition is always to win the next game.”
That approach could prove important as Da Cruz attempts to balance the enormous expectations surrounding one of South Africa’s biggest clubs with the realities of building a competitive team.
TROPHIES ARE THE TARGET — BUT THE PROCESS COMES FIRST
There appears to be no disagreement over the ultimate objective.
Bobby Motaung wants trophies. Fernando Da Cruz wants to build the results that can eventually deliver them.
For Chiefs supporters, the real test will come on the pitch. If Da Cruz can turn his match-by-match philosophy into consistent victories, the pressure for silverware could eventually become an opportunity to restore the Amakhosi to the top of South African football.
For now, however, the message from the coach is straightforward: don’t focus on the trophy cabinet just yet — win the next game.
