THE KINGMAKER NEEDS TO GO TO WORK

Ed Woodward sharing a joke with Mourinho

Ed Woodward is the reason behind Man United current collapse, but there’s a feeling that this could have been avoided. If anything, Jose Mourinho should have learned from what happened at his former team and Antonio Conte.

There is a feeling that every interview that Jose has been involved in during preseason had a feeling of a man who had given up. This situation has happened before to different managers. Jurgen Klopp had this problem at Liverpool but he never complained. He never blamed anyone or made players feel like they are not good enough. He worked with the players he had and added players in positions that needed strengthening. Antonio Conte won the Premier League with Chelsea on his first season but because of lack of investment the next season, he started complaining and that made his players start believing that they are not good enough. Chelsea defence never got off to a good start; it never got off at all.  This was a good manager who allowed investments off other teams like Man City, Liverpool and Man United made him feel like he's not getting assistance from the team management, truth be told, he wasn’t getting the help.
 

Conte and Pogba

Conte background is that of a manager who knows how to set-up an average team to be good. From the time he started coaching in 2006, he has purchased 69 players at £8 951 850 per player, compared to Pep Guardiola who has signed 55 players at £19 991 852 per player and Jose Mourinho's 100 players signed went for £13 783 448. This shows that Conte was never a manager who goes and spends money on top names, but he knew how to make average to good players become superstars. He took an ageing Italian national team with no hope of making it through the group, let alone, to compete with against the defending Euro champions, Spain. He not only took them to the quarterfinals, but they beat Spain along the way.

From the time he was at Juventus, Conte never felt like he was given the players he wanted but he worked with what he got, he won Serie A several times but failed to be successful in Champions League. This, he said later, was down to lack of improvements in his squad. When he got to Chelsea, he inherited a team that was thought to be misfits after the “Special One” failed to defend the league title with the same players he won with 3 months earlier. Antonio performed miracles. His defending of the league became nothing more than a battle between him and team management, he distancing himself from any transfers being made by the team, this led to speculations players’ unhappiness and he eventually got fired.

Life in Madrid

Getting back to Jose, he also came from a background of not going on a spending spree, he has been able to create players and build them into superstars. But if you get to join teams like Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Manchester United, it’s expected that you spend the money available. With Chinese and Arab money, the market has changed in that an average player will around 60-90 million. Jose has fell into this trap because of the teams he has coached and the possibilities of the amount that might be made available. For a team like United, if you come 2^nd in the league, smart money would be on you going on a spending spree the next season to try to close 19 points gap.

The unsung hero

But, as it is, no investments were done and Jose decided to go at it the wrong way, imagine Pochettino at Tottenham, he didn’t do business this past transfer window but he never gave his players a feeling of not being good enough. He got to work and the season looks good. Even if he’s been fighting with his bosses, we are unable to sense that because the players are being told to prove to everyone that, lack of new signing is not the end and the fact that they still have all their players is more like signing new players in itself.

Yes Mourinho didn’t get the players he wanted, yes he had injuries to deal with, but modern football asks for one to come up with solutions. We’ve seen it before, he has done it before. He is The Kingmaker, he made so many kings, this is an opportunity to do it again. This guy was known as the special one for a long time, and this was because he was outplaying the best managers in the world. Where Man United is, this situation asks for Mourinho to get to work and make things happen, to remind us why he called himself “the Special One”. And remembering that his record has shown that his 3^rd season always ends with him getting fired, the way this season has started, he’s not doing himself any favours.

MY UNPATRIOTIC BONE

My late dad was very competitive. He was what we call stubborn person. He stood for what is right but in most cases for what he believes in. he was not perfect like any human being but I learned a lot from him even though you only realize what you’ve learned from a person when they no longer here.

Me and my twin were born Chiefs fans, diehard fans. We would cry every time Chiefs lost but he never cared because he was a Pirates fan. The fact that we were in pain made him be more ruthless to get his comments through about our “useless”, and he never ever suggested that we join his team; he always wanted us to be with our team. He understood what rivals mean and he got taught us that. He was not educated, but he was smart and he taught us so much. My dad was also never the biggest soccer fan, I don’t think he was a fan at all but he knew how we love our soccer and Chiefs and developed a knack for knowing when Chiefs lost and Pirates won. I think he liked Pirates, not that he would miss going to have his usual drinks or afternoon sleep, no, those were more important to him than this soccer thing. He just loves seeing his team and our team losing so he can have a field day. In all the years I’ve known him, I have never ever heard him sympathize with us about Chiefs, he was a Pirates follower through and through.

The Glamour Boys

I cannot remember any time in my life from the day I was born that I was never a Chiefs fan. I’d rather be angry with them, criticize them and threaten to leave but never did. My relationship with the black and gold is too deep to see it for a couple of bones. While writing this, I’m seeing a repeat of Real Madrid and Barcelona game, how the supporters hate each other, how the players go for it, how intense, this is a rivalry indeed. I’ve been told Pirates is representing South Africa in the CAF Confed cup finals, well they come from here yes but it don’t mean they represent me, they represent the bones. Bafana Bafana, Banyana, Amaglug-glug, Amajimbos, and all the others that I failed to mention they represent South Africa, me. The other day Spain was playing against England and the match had to be moved from Santiago Bernabeu because there were fears that Gerard Pique with be abused by fans of Real after he joked last season after winning the treble. Real Fans still remembered and it don’t matter if you’re representing your national team or not, as for me I do accept Pirates players representing our national team, I’m not going to hope they win Confed Cup. i\m not SABC or Supersport, I’m not Sowetan or The Times, I know I’m not Kickoff or Soccer Laduma, I’m Fani and I will never sell my soul to the dead.

Etoile Sohel, champions in waiting

This cup must go back to Tunisia with Etoile Sahel and as for Pirates, I hope they miss all the trophies this season, I hope they go empty handed. You can quote me on that. All I know is that all those who are saying, “oh but they represent our country”, well wait until they win it, they are going to bring it up in every conversation about local soccer. The was a time when they went years without cup before Rudi Krol won them some treble, when supporters of teams that won cup recently would be in a conversation, a Pirates supporter would interfere, “We won Champions League in 1995”, it was over 10 years ago.

I learned my lesson. They did well to get there but I’m afraid this “patriotic” BS stops here.

I wish you a loss.

Sincerely Yours

Your Biggest Hater 

The Fallen Angel

“Athletes today are scared to make Muhammad Ali Statements” Nas, My Generation

It’s been a while since I wrote on this blog. I felt it was only right to write again seeing that I do get time these days to enjoy my 2^nd love. Enough about me let’s get into the business of The Beautiful Game and defence of this great man who is either being misunderstood or just been thrown into the deep end to tarnish his reputation. In the current era, there has never been a manager who has been dominant in world football than this man. He has done a lot for the sport especially in the UK even though he is an outcast. He’s got fewer friends.

I am the Greatest!

Ali knocked heavyweight champion out

Muhammad Ali called himself the greatest. In all of boxing and all the history of boxing, Ali had the audacity to stand on a podium and call himself the greatest. He was the only one who believed that he could beat World Heavyweight champion Sonny Liston in 1964. The difference between Ali and Liston was that Ali convinced himself he was the best, and Liston’s fans convinced him he was the best. In the end, someone who truly believed he was the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time fulfilled his own destiny and became the World Champion.

When Ali first came out, he disrupted the whole world with his cockiness and who could forget his famous quote before fighting George Foreman, “I have wrestled with an alligator. I done tussled with a whale. I done handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail! That’s bad! Only last week I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalized a brick! I’m so mean I make medicine sick! Bad, bad, fast. Last night I cut the lights out in my bedroom, hit the switch, was in the bed before the room was dark, fast. And you George Foreman, all you chumps are gonna bow when I whup him, all of ya! I know you got ’em, I know you got ’em picked, but the man is in trouble. I’m gonna show you how great I am!” Because of his personality and the fact that he believed in his own abilities, he will be known forever in the history of boxing as “The Greatest”.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho

I’m the Special One

When Jose Mourinho joined Chelsea, he called himself the special one in a league that had great managers and he won the league in his first season.

Fast forward, 2015/16 season, his second stint at Chealsea after winning league titles in Italy and Spain and winning another title in England, they’ve only won 3 time in 11 league matches, and now “The Special One” is being taunted by the media and football supporters alike. Everyone has their own opinion of the man and his team. Speculations are coming fast and furious “Chelsea star said Mourinho has lost the dressing room”, “If he loses the next game, his out”, “Chelsea are already looking for Mourinho replacement”, whatever the story, however true these stories might be Mourinho has been the best manager in the current era.

It has been said that Mourinho’s needs to know when to shut up, or how not to be controversial. From the time he took his CL winning Porto team to face Sir Alex Ferguson Man United at Old Trafford, Mourinho ran the half the pitch to celebrate with his players, which was seen as “ungentlemanly” by the English media and the so called greats or gentlemen of the English game. Mourinho is unconventional, he’s not like other manager, he’s a rebel, he creates rules and challenge authority. Some rules are there to be challenged, not broken and he’s the man to do that. He was once removed from the bench while at Real Madrid, instead of doing what all the other managers would do which was to go and sit up there, he decided to ask one of the season ticket holders sitting behind the team bench to let him use his sit to be closer to his bench so that he can communicate with them, that was Jose doing what he does best, being unconventional.

Luis van Gaal Barcelona team

Mourinho, the fallen angel, was part of the Barcelona team that invented and reshaped modern football in the mid-90s. Graduates from that era include managers such as Pep Guardiola (Bayern Munich), Luis Enrique (Barcelona), Julen Lopetegui (FC Porto), Laurent Blanc (PSG), Frank De Boer (Ajax), Phillip Cocu (PSV), Luis van Gaal (Man United) and Roland Koeman (Southampton). In that line up of these 8 apostles from the Barca way, Mourinho stands alone. He did not draw the same lessons as every one of them in that his style is the exact opposite to that of Barcelona.  

Barcelona style has always been to hold on to possession and all the managers mentioned above rely on this style, only Mourinho who doesn’t believe that possession win you matches. His anti-Barcelona sterns have made him into a unique manager, he’s personality has always been unique. Now he’s been asked to change and be something that he is not because “It might save his job and his teams ‘season”, be like other managers, shut up and get on with it.  Mourinho always lived by the sword; he made his career by taking on the best, coming up with methods, if not unusual ones, to be the best, if he dies, it’s only fair he dies by the same sword. He’s a big manager, he speaks his mind, he knows he’s “The Special One”. He is still the best coach for Chelsea despite media trying to push him out of English Football. He speaks out against unfairness of officials; he will forever be that type of coach.

I wouldn't sack him if I was Chelsea. I think he's a fantastic manager, his record shows that.

Jamie Carragher on Jose Mourinho

In the middle of all the confusion and speculations taking place at The Bridge, the supporters have put their full support behind the manager. In football, when something goes wrong, the known solution has been to fire the manager. Last season Dortmund was in the same kind of situation with Jurgen Klopp at the helm but the German team refused to fire their coach and allowed him to take them out of that hole. Chelsea seem to be doing the same thing after giving the manager contract extension before the season started. Manuel Pelligrini, Carlo Ancelotti believe that Jose is the only manager to take Chelsea out of this bad moment. As much as the team is losing, at the moment it seems like there is no manager out there who can turn the fortunes of the team around than the man at the helm. You almost feel like the fact that arguably the best manager in the world is going through this spell in his career has brought managers to come out supporting him. They the ones who understand there is nothing fun about winning the league convincingly and 3 months the line one finds himself unemployed. 

Because of where he finds himself, Mourinho is expected to change who he is and to be humble, he's brave enough to be who he has always been and in the eyes of many, its called arrogance. Jose is not shy to stand his ground and fight on, he is fighting not only for the supporters but also for the players, the same players that media are always quoting as saying the manager is closer to the exit. Chelsea have been known to fire easily and if they stick with Mourinho, they would have given a clear indication that they want continuity and they still believe in the manager, after all, he is Mr Chelsea, "ONE OF US".

26 GOAL MAN

LESLEY MANYATHELA

Since the beginning of the PSL in 1996, I don’t remember South African football being in a better state than it is at the moment. We’ve seen Bernard Parker, Nasief Morris and Benni McCarthy coming back to South Africa. Last season leading goal scorer has left our shores for German out fit TSG 1899 Hoffenheim and he was replaced by another goal scoring machine from Amazulu, Lehlohonolo Majoro and was later joined by Bernard Parker from FC Twente in Holland.

The league sponsor, ABSA, has set a 26 goal target for the top goal scorer. Since Chiefs brought both Majoro and Parker into their team, Pirates went a step further; they brought in one man whose experience is probably better than those of the two Chiefs players combined. It’s fair to say that, with all the preseason signings by the treble winners, including this one, they look more determined to defend all their trophies. They aim to go even further than last season.
But the signing of Benni is very much interesting.

BENNI McCARTHY

After spending most of the time with Ajax Cape Town, he joined Pirates. For me it made sense, no big player would chose Ajax over Kaizer Chiefs or Orlando Pirates here in South Africa. He played in Europe for the past 14 years and he’s arguably the most successful South African footballer over the past decade and half. But here is where everything gets interesting, the last time Pirates had a leading goal scorer was in 2002/03 season with the late Lesley Manyathela doing it for them. Since then we’ve seen the PSL top-scorer award being named the Lesley Manyathela Golden Boot Award but Pirates has never had a player claiming this award.
Manyathela managed to score 18 goals (22 in all competitions after promising the chairman to score as many goals as his shirt number) and since then we’ve seen midfielders and defenders do it for Pirates. Last season was no different. Isaac Chansa, Tlou Segolela and Thulasizwe Mbuyane scored regularly to seal the league for them. Mind you there were six strikers who managed to score not more than 4 goals. The last Pirates’ strikers to get into the double figures were ­Phumudzo Manenzhe and Excellent Walaza in the 2004/05 and 2006/07 seasons respectively, when they found the back of the net 10 times and Benedict Vilakazi got to 13 in 2003/04, since then there has never been anyone good enough to get to 18. One feels that Pirates still have a debt to pay; they still have to win the top-scorer award in memory of Lesley ‘Slow Poison’ Manyathela.

I’m not even going to try to give you the figures of Benni’s career that will just be a challenge in itself, but the question remains, does he still got it in him to score 15 goals or is he the 26 goal man. He is 33 and his international career speaks for itself. He has already scored his first goal, 25 more to go. Can Benni do it for Phuti, the story continues.

AFRICAN WAY OF PLAYING SOCCER

In the past, the very past, the past that seem so long ago, not as far as “Ace” Ntsoelengoe past, at least Doctor Khumalo past, there was a term that used to go around, ‘African Football’ or ‘African Style of play’ in the words Bra S’bu Mseleku.

It’s amazing how things have changed. One day, not too long ago, Pirates were playing Tottenham Hotspurs. They were leading by two goals to one and they had the likes of Steve Lekoelea, Joseph Makhanya, Sailor Tshabalala, Lebohang Mokoena, Mbulelo Mabizela and the late Lesley Manyathela in their team. They totally overhauled Spurs with their physicality and showed quite a bit of skill and sometimes taunting Spurs with some of their tricks. After the match, the then Spurs manager, Glen Hoddle, was not pleased at all, it started a short war of words in the media about the alleged 'lack of respect' shown by Pirates and the Pirates Brand manager claimed that this was ‘the way that South African football was played’ and that Hoddle must have expected his player to 'seeking autographs' from the visiting superstars!!

For South African, it was never about disrespect, it was indeed the way of South African football. When Doctor Khumalo collected the ball on the right and dribble passed an oncoming opponent and performs a ‘shibobo’ on the next, the pass to ‘shoes’ Mosoeu who performs a ‘tsamaya’ on the opposition plays the ball through for Mark Williams to finish, that’s what we call a ‘goal made in South Africa’ …

On Tuesday, 19th July, Pirates played Tottenham Hotspurs again. After being one-all in the second stanza, Pirates player started playing around with the ball. Mike Mayambela, Tlou Sekgoleloa, Andile Jali, Oupa Manyesa and others did their thing with the ball. The crowd loved every bit of it. The sound of the song mixed with the glorious noise of the mighty vuvuzelas were the clear prove that everyone at the venue loved what they were seeing, the resurrection of ‘the South African way of playing soccer’.

This writer was on twitter when all this occurred; I was amazed to see how many of us have forgotten the way Africa play ‘the beautiful game. I was surprised by the comments that came through the social network. They were talking about how Pirates must learn to finish off the game before they go for ‘shoe shine and piano’. But the reality is, we play a very attractive style of football, it’s been happening for a very long time. We don’t just play long balls for no reason. So I asked myself, what is South African way of playing soccer, that unique brand we call our own? I got reminded of the 2003 game all over again. How we were happy then and thought Hoddle was mental for demanding respect when we were playing our own game.

And I recalled what Bra Zacharia ‘Computer’ Lamola, a former Kaizer Chiefs great, said to Bra S’bu Mseleku (2nd July, 1998): ‘Our natural style revolves around keeping possession. Our play is a slow build up from the back. We don’t rush, even if we have to pass backwards. As long as you are in possession of the ball your chance of scoring a goal is 100%.’ He went on to say that they were taught to treat the ball as if it’s their girlfriend.

‘You don’t let anyone mess with your girlfriend, so you mustn’t let anyone take the ball away from you.’ (I know what you thinking of).

Zimbabwean coach Shepherd Murape agreed. ‘In Africa we start our moves slowly from the back. As the ball reaches the midfield we get to second gear and move into overdrive as the ball reaches our forwards. A quick burst of speed opens up the opposition’s defence.

‘This lets African players save a lot of energy. They don’t rush things the way European players do.’

The then Amagluglu coach Bra Shakes Mashaba said he’s confused when people talk about style. ‘To me style is something individual,’ he says. Every player has his own style. All we need to do is sit down and formulate a technical method in which various individual skills and style can be managed together.’

S’bu went on to say that South African soccer, like South American soccer, always revolve around individuals. Orlando Pirates had Scara Sono and later his son Jomo, who could change the tide of the game any moment.

From way back in the past, we had the likes of Kaizer Motaung, and the late Ace Ntsoelengoe, Andries ‘Panyaza’ Maseko, Mecro ‘Masterpiece’ Moripe, Frederick ‘Sugar Ray’ Xulu. This writer has never watched the aforementioned player but I have heard that they dictated the game and often decided the result of the match.

So this made me wonder, Barcelona have been playing passing possession football, and if you read clearly, that’s the type of style that’s been mentioned as the African way of playing.

I’m not going to comment about the 1974 Netherlands National Football Team or the ‘Total Football’ which was invented by Rinus Michels. Apparently that’s what Barca is trying to play. It said that in ‘Total Football’, a player who moves out of position is replaced by another from his team, thus retaining the team’s intended organisational structure. No outfield player is fixed in a nominal role; anyone can be successively an attacker, a midfielder and a defender. The only player fixed in a nominal position is the goalkeeper.

I read Calvin Marlin interview on Soccer Laduma Issue No 730, he spoke about ‘general shape’. He said ‘It’s about being aware in the field of play when this guy goes there you go there.’ Do South African player have any idea of the ‘South African way of playing’ or are they as confused as I am? I don’t think ‘South African way of playing no longer exists. The way Calvin puts it, our player didn’t grow up being taught to be highly technical and physically strong.

Last I checked, South African unique style was ‘taking on defenders with the ball. Having playmakers controlling the midfield and dictating the pace of the game,’ said Steve Lekoelea. You could say Barcelona is doing just that with Lionel Messi totally mesmerising defenders. Pirates seem to trying to do that this season, Chiefs was doing it last season and continues to try to pass the ball. Are they using the ‘Dutch Total Football’ or ‘The African Unique Style’? What is our style? Have we lost our identity because of too much exposure to European football or may be we just never had an identity to start with?

FOR THE LOVE OF PASSION FOOTBALL!!

GAME OF GENTLEMEN PLAYED BY CHEATERS

As if the owner of the team bribing his team’s way to the championship or to avoid relegation is the only way of cheating, football has become a game of 22 or so cheaters per match. The amazing thing is that when you speak of cheating in the beautiful game, everyone things about money changing hands and matches being fixed. Take notice of the new type of cheating, pity the defenders in this situation because the get to be the guilty party.

The FIFA Women’s’ World Cup 2011 edition held in Germany have raised some doubts in my head about the man’s game. For sure this are only ladies and for sure we cannot expect them to play in the same level as the testosterone filled male species, if anyone had a doubt about what it takes in football to be a real competitor and to earn a penalty not cheat to get it, this ladies will show you a thing or two. They don’t know how to dive or fake an injury. When she falls to the ground, believe it, she’s really hurt. The quality and class they possess sometimes makes you forget that you are watching ladies, only to be reminded by the lack of cheating.

Watching Barcelona play is such a dream, the way they pass the ball, the way they close down opponents when they’ve lost the ball. Every department in that Barca team works like a well oiled machine. Lionel Messi is just a machine; you feel he has to go back to the future where he belongs. They are the best team of the era, no doubt. Having said that, if you challenge them like Real Madrid or Arsenal (two teams who stood head and toes against Barca) did, you are going to come up against a different Barcelona team. Teams even predict that they are going to get red card days before the game.
If an opposing team player fouls their player, they are so quick to surround the referee to try to persuade him to book the opposing player. Most times than not the referee book the player because of the pressure he’s been put under. Even if the ref decides not to book the player, he is not allowed to penalize a team for trying to make another team look guilty. In rugby, only the captain is allowed to approach the referee and even if he does approach the ref, it’s not to persuade the ref to change his decision his team’s way but to ask for explanation of the decision. If a player commits a foul and then tries to protest, the ball is moved 10 yards from where the incident occurred. In football there are no such rules but you would feel that we don’t really need such rules; it’s the responsibility of the organisation to make sure players behave in the field of play.
Barca fiasco continues. There is no other stronger small player around like Messi. He does not go down easy. He fights for the ball and fights get back on his feet, defenders struggle to contain him. BUT lately he has added something new to his repertoire, he dives, well the rest of that team are divers. When teams stand up against Barcelona, they have a way of frustrating opposition apart from their excellent football style; they fail to be on their feet whenever they are challenged for position. It’s embarrassing and disgraceful to watch. They do get incentives for diving around and faking injuries, the opposing player get booked or even send off. If the ref notice that a player dived, all he gets is a yellow card and an opportunity to finally master his skill, DIVING. The way they are good at it, supporters can’t even make out if it’s a real injury or a fake.

When did football, man football became such a sissy game, was it something that was brought to us by Daniel Ortega?

WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE?
UEFA is already in it by the introduction of additional assistance referees. This idea I favour whole-heartedly. It basically helps the referee in situations like that Lampard moment in Bloemfontein. For me, that’s all football need, another human to help the referee out, not a machine.
I don’t believe in technology during the game is necessary, be it “goal line technology” or “video replay” because we need to keep the game pure. We all know England will never forget their disallowed goal against Germany in the quarter-final of the 2010 FIFA WORLD CUP, but those are human errors and as human, they are most often than not, going to be part of our everyday dealings. There’s got to be shared responsibilities here, the players’ needs to also play their part in this instance. I understand it’s no longer about the passion and the honest competition but only about the money more than anything. Lets use cricket as a reference even though I do understand the technology there, lets put that aside. Its not only the empire’s responsibility when you have edged the ball to the wicketkeeper, if you know, you walk. When fielding at say Point, Gully or Slips and a batsman happens to edge the ball towards and it bounce just before you make a catch, and you know it bounced, instead of celebrating and saying it’s a catch, you make the job easy for the umpire by telling him it bounced first. When you know you are not out you are given out, you don’t complain, you walk. Now how gentlemanly would this sport be. Football players need to be more responsible and show their love for this game. They have to protect the game they love. I don’t believe any of them want to find themselves in a stop-start type of game.
May be players should be fined after the match upon the reviewing a recording of the game. In cricket players get to be fined half of their match fees or the whole of their match fee for showing decline after being given out. A captain suffers the same fate for his teams’ slow over-rate. Teams have to take part of the responsibility to help FIFA safe the beautiful game. Players have to be fined for not showing respect for the game and not taking into consideration their roles as ‘role models’. May be FIFA is declining technology not ruin football but to protect this ‘religion’, the game we love so much, the beautiful game.
FOR THE LOVE OF PASSION FOOTBALL!!

CHIEFS RESPOND TO PIRATES TRIPLE

In Spain you have Barcelona and Real Madrid. In Italy you have AC Milan and Inter and in South Africa, there's Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates. What all this teams have in common is that when their rival does something, the supporters wait for a respond from their team. Sometimes you are not judged by how good you are in all situations during the season but by how you respond to what your supporters term as their biggest 'rival'. When Orlando Pirates took almost all the silverwares of last season in what is probably the most successful season since the beginning of PSL, we all waited in anticipation for Kaizer Chiefs respond. It came as early as the 28th June when they unveiled their 2011/12 Nike kit. It was followed by some mixed reactions from all fans from both teams, including the followers of other teams and media. As its the norm with passionate football lovers, naming has never been a problem. The "Zebra Boys", "Brasso", "PAC United", were some of the names that came. But the kit bold new home kit was inspired by traditional black and gold club colours, infused with its distinctive chief's logo iconic in clubs history. The dramatic design encapsulate the rich history of the club. And then we waited once again to see what Pirates will come up with. On the 06 July, Orlando Pirates launched their 2011/12 Adidas kit. This was termed by other football followers as a "reunveiling" of last season kit. Apparently Pirates said due to the popularity of last season home jersey, Adidas has stuck to the same clean and classic look with attention to smaller design details on the jersey. The boldness in Pirates attire comes in the form of the red away jersey which is believed to be a hit with fans. "The feedback we received from last season jersey was very positive and so we decided to remain with a clean and classic design. Orlando Pirates has a great tradition of pushing the envelope in jersey designing and I believe we have done that yet again this year." Nkosana Khoza, Marketing Director OPFC. Personally I feel Pirates failed to pitch this time. But having said that, we await a great season ahead. There is a possibility that we are going to see Chiefs and Pirates more times than we want. We are hoping that Ajax CT come to the party once again, Sundowns is always there and Bloem Celtic coach has made it clear that he wants top 4 finish this year. Golden Arrows have done some interesting acquisitions so we'll have to wait and see how the season's gonna go. THIS FOR THE PASSION OF FOOTBALL..