Fear of betrayal? – Milford FC head coach Buthelezi acknowledges that the team’s owners are fans of Kaizer Chiefs
Nkululeko Buthelezi, the coach of Milford, has acknowledged that his players are more eager to play Kaizer Chiefs than the team’s management and technical staff. In the Nedbank Cup Round of 32, Chiefs and the National First Division team were set to face one other at FNB Stadium on Sunday.
Despite their struggles in the second tier, Milford want to disturb the status quo in Gauteng. Buthelezi told the media, “What I can say is that the players themselves are more excited about this match, more than us [technical team and management], with regards to playing Chiefs.”
Because they are more motivated, I believe they will exert every effort to defeat them. “The club’s owners I’m not sure about the players because they are Chiefs supporters themselves, but I can see that they want to win the game.
However, Amakhosi will be motivated to avoid the humiliation of losing to a Division One team in the Nedbank Cup. The Soweto giants were humiliated to lose this competition in 2019 and 2021 to TS Galaxy and Richards Bay, two then-NFD teams.
This will be the first-ever clash between Milford and the Chiefs, the record 13-time Nedbank Cup winners. After spent years honing their craft in the ABC Motsepe League, the third tier, Milford is currently in their first season in the National First Division.
The KwaZulu-Natal team has never advanced to the Nedbank Cup Final 16. The last remaining full day for both teams to hone their strategies ahead of Sunday’s matchup is Friday. While their KZN rivals are vying for their first major trophy, the Chiefs are putting in a bid for their first piece of hardware since 2015.