Baroka head coach Vincent Kobola has acknowledged the tough task of saving the club from relegation in the DStv Premiership. The mission to beat the drop will start today when they take on Golden Arrows at the Peter Mokaba Stadium (5pm).
With 12 points to play for, Baroka can still produce a miracle and save their status, and Kobola was entrusted by the club’s chair Khurishi Mphahlele to produce that miracle.
“We are fighting relegation and it’s a big job for me and the club and we have four games to go. I thank the chairman for trusting me,” said Kobola.
“I’ve had a week and a half to prepare the team and they have responded very well and the mood has changed. You can see they’re motivated, they want to help the team survive relegation, they see the big picture,” he said.
Many coaches who join teams in a relegation dogfight pay attention to tightening things at the back, scoring goals, set pieces and changing the style of play to one route football. However, for Kobola that’s not been the case. He has focused on getting the confidence of the players up instead of tactical changes.
“For me, the most important thing was to motivate them because you can’t change anything now, you can’t play a new formation. I had to remind them that they’re good enough and they can do this,” Kobola said.
“It’s all about motivating them. I could see they were down and had fear. I had to remind them they still have a chance to change this. I’ve been there before, I had to remind them that I have been in this situation.
“With players, as long as you have played football, they want to hear your stories and they will understand. If you have played football, it’s easy to motivate them. That’s why Aaron Mokoena came down to motivate the guys. He played football, they understand when he talks about relegation and winning,” said Kobola.
Looking forward to his first game as head coach against Golden Arrows, Kobola declared it as a must-win given the troublesome position they’re in.
“Arrows won a game against Kaizer Chiefs, they're also motivated but we need it more, we need to start well. For us losing and drawing is not an option, we have to go all out, we have to win one,” he said.
Kobola’s tough mission to save Baroka starts today
New mentor says players are motivated to upset Arrows
Image: Muzi Ntombela
Baroka head coach Vincent Kobola has acknowledged the tough task of saving the club from relegation in the DStv Premiership. The mission to beat the drop will start today when they take on Golden Arrows at the Peter Mokaba Stadium (5pm).
With 12 points to play for, Baroka can still produce a miracle and save their status, and Kobola was entrusted by the club’s chair Khurishi Mphahlele to produce that miracle.
“We are fighting relegation and it’s a big job for me and the club and we have four games to go. I thank the chairman for trusting me,” said Kobola.
“I’ve had a week and a half to prepare the team and they have responded very well and the mood has changed. You can see they’re motivated, they want to help the team survive relegation, they see the big picture,” he said.
Many coaches who join teams in a relegation dogfight pay attention to tightening things at the back, scoring goals, set pieces and changing the style of play to one route football. However, for Kobola that’s not been the case. He has focused on getting the confidence of the players up instead of tactical changes.
“For me, the most important thing was to motivate them because you can’t change anything now, you can’t play a new formation. I had to remind them that they’re good enough and they can do this,” Kobola said.
“It’s all about motivating them. I could see they were down and had fear. I had to remind them they still have a chance to change this. I’ve been there before, I had to remind them that I have been in this situation.
“With players, as long as you have played football, they want to hear your stories and they will understand. If you have played football, it’s easy to motivate them. That’s why Aaron Mokoena came down to motivate the guys. He played football, they understand when he talks about relegation and winning,” said Kobola.
Looking forward to his first game as head coach against Golden Arrows, Kobola declared it as a must-win given the troublesome position they’re in.
“Arrows won a game against Kaizer Chiefs, they're also motivated but we need it more, we need to start well. For us losing and drawing is not an option, we have to go all out, we have to win one,” he said.
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