Chiefs have often been criticised for not taking African club competitions seriously like their rivals Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns do, but Motaung says this is a false narrative.
Amakhosi have not reached the group stages of a African club competition since going all the way to win the Mandela Cup in 2001 after beating Angola’s Interclube in the two-legged tie. The Mandela Cup merged with the CAF Cup in 2004 to form the Confederation Cup.
The Soweto giants are often mocked for not having a star above their badge like Pirates and Sundowns, but a good showing in this year’s Confederation Cup could lead their supporters into believing that they do indeed want to make their mark on the continent.
“We want to win a cup. We are playing in there not to be a face. We are going there to compete, we are not going there for fun,” Motaung said earlier this week.
“Every game Kaizer Chiefs plays, whether it’s a friendly, a Confed game or the league, we have a responsibility. It’s about the brand, it’s about the country, it’s about the job that we have to do. So there’s nothing like Kaizer Chiefs does not take Africa serious. It’s just that in football you go with the fighting spirit of winning and then you lose. If you remember Sundowns had also lost, but fortunately with God’s grace they were brought in and then won it [the 2016 Champions League]. Sometimes you lose, but not intentionally. We take it serious. We respect our brand, we respect our supporters and we respect football. We are there and we will compete.”
After knocking out Zimamoto in the preliminary round, Amakhosi will next take on ASSM Elgeco Plus in first round, first leg tie at Moses Mabhida Stadium this evening (20h15).