Chiefs coach Solinas an aggressive coach who strives for perfection‚ says Mphahlele

Giovanni Solinas is an aggressive coach who strives for perfection and wants to win‚ Kaizer Chiefs defender Ramahlwe Mphahlele has said.

Mphahlele played down the impact that Solinas’s late arrival – three-and-a-half weeks into the preseason‚ as Chiefs struggled to appoint a new head coach – might have on Amakhosi’s season.

Solinas finally received his work permit on Tuesday‚ meaning the 50-year-old Italian will take his place on the bench in Amakhosi’s Absa Premiership 2018-19 season opener against Mamelodi Sudnowns at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

“He wants to do things the way he wants and for the team to play the way he wants‚ ” Mphahlele said.

“So it’s difficult. Change is not easy‚ especially at the beginning.

“But we are adapting. We are doing everything in our power. We’re trying to work with him to say ‘OK‚ this can be done‚ this can’t be done’.

“We are working very hard. Especially off the pitch where we have to try and iron out little things and try and fix the team.

“It takes time. It’s a new era. We lost our coach last season‚ now it’s a new coach. We have to try and get to a high level.

“Bur he’s a very aggressive coach. He wants perfection. He wants us to work hard. He wants us to change the mentality.”

Solinas’s late arrival means the ex-Free State Stars coach will have had an effective three weeks to work with his squad and implement his style.

Mphahlele said he hopes that setback can be balanced out by Chiefs’ players hunger to make up for their past three trophyless seasons – a barren spell that cost Solinas’s predecessor‚ Steve Komphela‚ his job in April.

“Yes‚ we have a new coach. But‚ look‚ the players are still the same‚” the Bafana Bafana right-back said.

“And of course most of the players who are there know what happened last season and they want to change the situation – that’s the positive thing about it.

“With the coach coming in‚ of course he’s got his own philosophy. But we as players have agreed that we need to change things.

“So we just have to work with him. I know he came in late; he wants us to do things this way. But the positive part is that most of the players were there last season. And they’re still hurting from last season.

“And I just hope that pushes us players to do better.”

Chiefs have a tough opening two matches‚ following up their trip to Pretoria by hosting 2016-17 PSL champions Bidvest Wits at FNB Stadium on Tuesday (August 7).