‘I have no pressure to win cups for Chiefs’

Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi has implied there’s more to life than being worried about losing the Nedbank Cup semifinal against Mamelodi Sundowns, insisting he wasn’t under any pressure.

Kick off is 6pm on Sunday.

Sundowns have already beaten Chiefs three times this season, and another defeat for Amakhosi at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday at 6pm would put paid to their hopes of finally ending their decade-long trophy drought, and also shine a spotlight on Nabi’s future as they’re already struggling in the league.

Even so, the Tunisian coach has emphasised he's under no pressure. Nabi suggested there were more important things that bothered him, like seeing people struggle to make ends meet. “Which pressure? Is football pressure?

"The only pressure I have is from the fans. When I am outside, I try to do my best to make them happy. Life here in SA is too expensive, so I need to make them happy to forget that life is expensive,” he said during a press conference in Sandton yesterday.

“When you enjoy football, you forget all your problems. On the 25th (of the month), people have to pay for their houses and rent, that’s pressure. If we don’t win this trophy, we have to continue working. Will I be under pressure if we lose this one? No, no! The real pressure is social, where people’s salaries are finished a day after payday ... you need to pay school fees for your child, that’s real pressure. But is losing a game and still receiving a big salary pressure? I don’t have pressure, but I have respect for the fans and for the club.”

Nabi revealed he was still on the same page with his employers that the project he said he is building would not be complete for at least three years.“We’re trying to build our team in this first year [of his stint]. It’s a process, but if we get an opportunity to win a trophy while we’re still building our team, why not?

"We play to win, but there’s no pressure inside because the project is under way. We agreed with the board that the process will take two or three years, and after those years, then we’ll be a better team that can play for cups and even for CAF tournaments.”

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