Africa-Press – South-Africa. Kaizer Chiefs got their 2025/26 season off to a good start, outwitting 10-man Stellenbosch 2-0 in their league opener at Athlone Stadium on Sunday.
Glody Lilepo converted from the spot for the second goal after Omega Mdaka missed the ball and kicked Ashley du Preez deep in stoppage time.
Nkosingiphile Ngcobo opened the scoring in the first half of the sold-out affair in the Cape.
Chiefs were without their head coach Nasreddine Nabi, who on Friday rushed to his homeland of Tunisia to be with his wife after she was involved in a car accident. They also missed all the new players they recently signed from foreign leagues including striker Flavio Silva, midfielder Ethan Chislett and Nkanyiso Shinga.
The players are believed to be still waiting for their International Transfer Clearances.
Twenty-year-old striker Naledi Hlongwane, who was only promoted to the first team a few months ago, spearheaded Amakhosi’s attack, making his senior debut.
Thabiso Monyane, who joined the side from arch-rivals Orlando Pirates in July, also made his debut.
Conversely, Stellenbosch only made two changes to the starting XI that beat AmaZulu 3-2 in the MTN8 quarterfinals last week, with Chumani Butsaka and Siviwe Nkwali replacing Thato Khiba and Athenkosi Mcaba from the previous game’s first XI.
Nkwali would be sent off for preventing Mduduzi Shabalala from a goal-scoring opportunity in the 15th minute.
Ngcobo beautifully tucked away the resultant free-kick on the edge of the box, beating the home side’s goalkeeper Sage Stephens hands down.
Chiefs started brightly, winning four back-to-back corner-kicks inside the first five minutes. Stellies also had their fair share of corners in the next few minutes, making it for a thrilling start.
Conceding proved to be a wake-up call for Stellenbosch as they started to throw more numbers upfront, putting Amakhosi’s defence under a lot of pressure.
Wandile Duba cleared one ball off the line amid the hosts’ dominance. Devin Titus also nearly levelled matters six minutes before the hour mark, only for his excellent curler to hit the woodwork. Sanele Barns would be the next Stellies player to hit the woodwork again, via a free-kick, a few minutes later.
The second half wasn’t as entertaining as the first one. Chiefs brought in Sibongiseni “Ox” Mthethwa for Ngcobo at the start of the stanza and that stabilised things for them in the midfield as Stellies couldn’t find the joy they found in the first half.
Chiefs next face Polokwane City at FNB Stadium on Wednesday (7.30pm).
For More News And Analysis About South-Africa Follow Africa-Press
