‘It is embarrassing,' says Zwane as he raises hand to take over reins at Chiefs

Arthur Zwane has raised his hand to take over at Kaizer Chiefs on a full-time basis as he admits the club is in an embarrassing situation and needs a complete overhaul.

Amakhosi suffered a fourth successive league defeat at the hands of Cape Town City at FNB Stadium on Saturday, and are now outsiders to finish second or third that comes with continental competition next season.

Zwane, who is in a caretaker capacity with Dillon Sheppard after Stuart Baxter’s dismissal last week, said if he is asked by the powers that be at Naturena he will seize the opportunity to lead the club into the future.

“When you look at the way we have been performing, we can’t be proud of the situation that we find ourselves in,” he said after the 2-1 loss to City.

“It is embarrassing, we can’t even walk in the streets peacefully because of the situation that we find ourselves in. But we don’t have a choice, we have to soldier on because we are the chosen ones and we have to face this challenge.”

Zwane said Chiefs need to beef up the squad with quality players.

“We are not going to back off, we are taking it head on until we get things right. So, when you look at the players that we have, there are good players but some of them might not be good enough to play for Kaizer Chiefs.

“If the opportunity [to coach the team] comes, why not. We all want to grow as coaches and what is the point of being with the team for so many years and when I am given the responsibility I shy away.

“Who else should take this responsibility? The situation we are in right now shouldn’t be us trying to hit the ground running. It is not going to work because we have done that for many years as a club.

“We have to rebuild, we have to start afresh, bring the right people in terms of technical staff and playing personnel because there is so much that we need to work on right now.

“The sooner we do that as a club, the better because things will be back to normal. If you are going to do this thing of saying let’s look for someone who will hit the ground running, it is still going to have challenges.

“We are going to bring in new players who don’t know the set-up, the environment and the pressure that comes with the responsibility of playing for this club.

“Also, the person who will come in doesn’t know so many other things. Kaizer Chiefs is a beast, it is not just another club, it needs someone who knows it very well. If the opportunity is granted, I will grab it with both hands and make sure we bring the glory back.”

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