'Even Pitso Mosimane Can’t Fix This Squad' – Kaizer Chiefs Legend Sounds Alarm as Results Worsen

Kaizer Chiefs’ legendary former goalkeeper Joseph ‘Banks’ Setlhodi believes the club’s problems go far deeper than coaching, warning that even high-profile tactician Pitso Mosimane would struggle to succeed with the current squad and leadership.

The reigning Nedbank Cup champions officially clarified their coaching situation following the exit of head coach Nasreddine Nabi last month. 

The Tunisian mentor, whose departure had been shrouded in uncertainty, initially walked away on 17 September.

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At the time, Chiefs only issued a cryptic statement confirming that Nabi was “not with the team” and that the matter was being handled “internally.”

“Before you talk about coaches, let’s talk about the players,” Setlhodi told FARPost.

“You can bring 20 coaches to Chiefs, from the best in the world, the results won’t change. Chiefs lack good footballers. That is the problem. The coach does not win the game; it is the players that win the game. The coach only directs.”

On Friday, the club finally ended the speculation, officially announcing they had parted ways with Nabi.

 In the same announcement, Khalil Ben Youssef and Cedric Kaze were confirmed as interim co-coaches, tasked with steadying the ship for the remainder of the 2025/26 season.

Five matches into the new coaching arrangement, results have remained mixed: one win, two draws, and two defeats. 

In CAF Confederation Cup preliminary second-round qualifiers, Chiefs lost 1-0 to Angola’s Kabuscorp in the first leg, then won the return leg by the same margin, sneaking through on penalties.

In domestic competitions, the Betway Premiership has seen Amakhosi draw 1-1 with both Marumo Gallants and AmaZulu, before crashing out of the Carling Knockout Cup Last 16 to Stellenbosch FC on penalties after goalless 120 minutes.

Setlhodi did not spare criticism for the club’s leadership either. 

“If you are blind and leading a nation, that nation will fail because you see nothing. I don’t think Kaizer Chiefs have good leaders to address what is happening. Everybody can see where the problem is at Chiefs. They don’t fix the problems. The question is, why? Why.”

Sections of the fanbase have been clamoring for Mosimane to move to Naturena but Setlhodi dismissed the idea, insisting the club’s structure would repel even the most respected coach.

“Pitso would not stay at Chiefs. You know why? Because Chiefs don’t have good leaders, they don’t know how to address football matters. They think football is just business; you just go to the office and stay there. Football is something else,” he said with palpable frustration.

Setlhodi added that Chiefs’ current player base would frustrate any top coach.

"If Pitso goes to Chiefs, he will demand players. If they don’t give him what he needs, he will leave. Pitso won’t want to work with average players. You can’t have players earning R50 000 but still need to be taught how to trap the ball,” he concluded.