“SOMETIMES defeat is better than victory.”
These are certainly not the kind of statements Kaizer Chiefs fans want to hear as their team go through one of the most frustrating periods in their history.
But coach Giovanni Solinas has chosen to look at the positive side of the slow league start, ahead of Amakhosi’s MTN8 Cup kick off tomorrow (6pm).
Solinas face his former team Free State Stars, who visit Chiefs at FNB Stadium, in one of the four top-eight fixtures this weekend.
“Sometimes one defeat is better than victory because you learn from defeat. If you are intelligent you use the defeat to improve, to fix the mistakes,” reasoned Solinas.
Smarting from a 3-1 loss to Bidvest Wits, Chiefs go into the knockout match under growing pressure to record their first win this season.
Solinas was left to explain the defeat, saying he wasn’t going to be pressured by fans into making substitutions.
The partisan crowd turned on the Italian at the same venue on Tuesday, as Amakhosi starred down their first league defeat of the season.
Ea Lla Koto inflicted a painful defeat on Chiefs on the fateful Nedbank Cup night at Moses Mabhida Stadium last season.
“The idea is always to play well in every game, at home or away, in the cup or in the league, even international games like the Confederation Cup,” Solinas explained.
“The approach is the same. We try to dominate and win the game. We have two days to prepare for our next match. We need to check the fitness of players, and see if we need to change some players or not.”
Like his predecessor, Steve Komphela, Solinas has bemoaned the poor finishing, the malaise which has greatly undermined the Amakhosi’s effort in the last three season.
And he acknowledged Stars have been a revelation under Luc Eymael, posing a serious threat.
Midfielder Kabelo Mahlasela added that Chiefs will need to use their minds more than their bodies against the tricky Stars.
