Time bomb threat for Da Cruz

The three fixtures remaining for the month of October have the potential to turn Fernando da Cruz’s tenure at Kaizer Chiefs into a time bomb.

As it stands, the Frenchman has done little to inspire Chiefs towards becoming better than they were last season under Khalil Ben Youssef and Cedric Kaze.

Both the results and the pattern of play on the field have not improved.

READ Da Cruz on the wheel at Chiefs: For better or worse

While the Soweto giants have won three after 10 games under Da Cruz, what is further concerning is that they have recorded just a single victory in the last seven of those matches.

Da Cruz has turned to an approach thin on attacking emphasis as evidenced by his selection choices in the last two games.

Thabiso Monyane, Inacio Miguel, Thabo Moloisane, Bradley Cross, Paseka Mako, Reeve Frosler, and Sibongiseni Mthethwa were all starters, with Mfundo Vilakazi and Mduduzi Shabalala supporting Wandile Duba/Luke Baartman.

Beyond these concerns, the next three encounters could turn Da Cruz’s status at the club into a red zone with meetings already held to arrest the current situation.

Amakhosi have three competitions to play for the rest of October.

They need to rescue themselves in the CAF Confederation Cup on Friday against Red Arrows after losing 1-0 in the first leg in Zambia last Saturday.

Next, they host TS Galaxy at FNB Stadium under floodlights on Tuesday in the first round of the Carling Knockout.

The next Saturday – October 31 – is the Soweto Derby, which they will play as the away team at FNB Stadium.

Exiting the Confederation Cup will mean a downgrade from last season when they reached the group stage.

With the Carling Cup, it offers an opportunity for a trophy before Christmas and so carries weight for the Naturena-based outfit.

READ | Da Cruz on Chiefs form: Happiness and changes

Then the weight of the match against Orlando Pirates will be worth more than just the three points on offer as usual. 

Should they get knocked out of both the continental competition and the Carling Cup and then suffer defeat in the derby, it will spell disaster for Da Cruz.

It gets more intense now than it has ever been for the gaffer in the Chiefs job. 

Photo: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images

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Caf Confederation Cup Carling Knockout Cup Fernando Da Cruz Kaizer Chiefs News Soweto Derby