Head coach Stuart Baxter has warned Kaizer Chiefs they will need to maintain their intensity throughout every soccer game if they hope to retain their Premiership title.
Knowledge Musona scored for the hosts in the sixth minute at FNB Stadium on Monday night, and while they dominated the match, Amakhosi were unable to get another goal past the University of Pretoria defence and had to settle for a 1-0 win.
“We’re in a resource-driven industry, and of course I’m happy with three points, but if we’re going to be serious about this, then we need to make sure we don’t have the dip we had in the second half,” Baxter said.
“We’ve worked very hard to get rid of that and then we fell back into it in this match, which is not pleasing.”
While Chiefs drew level on points with log leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, who maintained a narrow advantage on goal difference, Tuks were left struggling in 12th place in the top-flight standings.
Tuks defender Buhle Mkhwanazi, the man of the match, lashed out at his teammates for their lethargic start to the fixture.
While the visitors created a few opportunities in the second period, they were on the back foot for most of the game after conceding the early goal.
“It’s a worrying factor because you can’t, as a team, come to a game without even creating a chance,” Mkhwanazi said.
“In the second half we woke up, but I believe our guys have to step up from the word go, not wait for things to be bad before they come to the party.”
Tuks assistant coach Samuel Troughton, who was in charge for the match, admitted his side was fortunate to get away with a narrow defeat.
“To be honest, we could have been a couple of goals down at halftime,” Troughton said.
“We were lucky to come through just with the one goal… and we’ve said to the players they need to pick things up.
“We need to be a bit braver and we need to be more consistent in all aspects of the game.”
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