Chippa United boss Chippa Mpengesi says he is often forced to drop the axe on coaches in order to protect the club's R70m valuation.

As had been expected, Mpengesi fired Eric Tinkler last week as coach after a string of negative results.

The notoriously trigger-happy chairman has now appointed former Black Leopards mentor Joel Masutha in the interim. Tinkler had gone six games without a victory during a streak of four losses and two draws. In his overall 10 games in charge in all competition, he had five losses, two wins and three draws.

"At times you weigh the options in a situation about whether it is better to continue on a certain path or if you should stop," Mpengesi said.

"Our club is worth around R70m, so which is more important ... to maintain our Premiership status or to lose it and lose all that value?"

The Eastern Cape-born businessman feels Masutha has a better understanding of how things work at the club.

"The coach understands the culture of the club. Remember, he was assistant to Kosta Papic a few years ago with us.

"After that he also worked with Roger Sikhakhane. So when Eric left, we thought we should bring someone who understands the culture. We have a way of doing things and a way of playing, so Joel knows the operation."

The expectations under Masutha will not be lowered as Chippa have not reassessed their objective of finishing in the top five. This will be a tough ask as the club is currently second from bottom with 10 points from 12 games.

"We want a top-five finish. It's still early and there are 18 games to play," he said.