Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates are gearing up for another fiery Soweto derby, with both coaches hammering home the message that teamwork must come before individual glory, especially for the rising stars in their squads.
Speaking to the media at a press conference ahead of Saturday’s showdown, Chiefs co‑coach Cedric Kaze highlighted the introduction of youngsters such as Mfundo Vilakazi, Mduduzi Tshabalala, and Wandile Duba, stressing that the derby is no place for personal showboating.
“Sometimes players want to play for themselves to look better, forgetting to work for the team,” Kaze explained. “In these kinds of games, they need to understand that their performance will only be good if the team’s performance is good. If the team struggles, the individual will struggle too.”
The Soweto giants have already given their young guns valuable derby minutes, and Kaze believes they have shown they are up to the task.
“We have some youngsters who have proven their value and shown they are up to the task,” he added.
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Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou echoed similar sentiments, warning against individualism in such a high-stakes clash.
“We all have individual projects as coaches and players, but to succeed in a big game like this, it’s important to put the individual project at the service of the collective project,” Ouaddou said. “If you want to shine alone, it will be very difficult to shine alone against 11 players of Kaizer Chiefs.”
With both sides calling for unity and discipline, the spotlight will be on how these young talents balance ambition with teamwork when the whistle blows on Saturday.