KAIZER Chiefs coach Ernst Middendorp is not a fan of showboating.
He wants his players, even in the dying minutes of a game they are firmly in control of, to continue playing constructive football.
Needless to say, the German-born coach was not impressed when some of his players were showing off some silky skills and tricks towards the end of their 5-3 mauling of Bloemfontein Celtic at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday.
Amakhosi stars including Lebogang Manyama, Dumisani Zuma and George Maluleka decided to kill the game off in true South African style – through showboating.
Their impressive victory over Phunya Sele Sele was Amakhosi’s eighth league win on the trot – a record this season.
The former Maritzburg United coach, with his straight face, described showboating as “nonsense”.
Middendorp was not impressed by the flicks and tricks his side were displaying as he wants his charges to always respect their opponent, regardless of the score line.
“No, it’s nonsense,” said Middendorp when asked if he does encourage his players to entertain the crowd with tricks before dropping his microphone down on the table.
However, Middendorp, whose side are ten points clear at the summit of the table wants different entertainment. At the beginning of the season, he instructed his team to be more “aggressive”.
Aggression was what Chiefs showed on Saturday and also championship mentality by coming from behind not once, but three times to ultimately win the game.
“Control, aggressiveness is one very important aspect in my game,” revealed Middendorp.
Chiefs will conclude the year and first half of the season with another trip to KwaZulu-Natal when they visit Telkom Knockout finalists Maritzburg United at Harry Gwala Stadium on 22 December.