Da Cruz talks trophies as Chiefs close in on Phili

'The first step is to start very well in the championship and after that we will take it step by step and make it our ambition to win trophies,' said the Chiefs head coach. Kaizer Chiefs head coach Fernando Da Cruz has reassured supporters he does want to win trophies this season, but says he will take it step by step, starting with Saturday’s Betway Premiership opener away to Kruger United. Chiefs will go for trophies, but… Da Cruz said last week at Naturena that Chiefs would be going for every trophy on offer this season. Amakhosi will play in the Caf Confederation Cup as well as all the top flight domestic competitions. After Chiefs’ Toyota Cup win over Scottland FC on the weekend, however, Amakhosi’s new head coach appeared to backtrack slightly. Da Cruz told reporters in Phokeng that he did not think his current squad could challenge Pirates and Sundowns for the Premiership title. He did, however, give the added caveat that he would reassess that opinion after Chiefs had brought in several new attacking signings. This week at the Betway Premiership launch, meanwhile, Da Cruz again appeared optimistic, albeit with a note of caution. “Our mission is to win trophies,” he said. “We are a big club, with a big history, a lot of fans and a lot of ambitions. But the first step is to start very well in the championship and after that we will take it step by step and make it our ambition to win trophies.” One of Chiefs’ new attacking signings does seem set to be Langelihle Phili. Negotiations were reported to be continuing yesterday between Stellenbosch and Chiefs. “You don’t want to lose the player, he is one of the hottest properties in South Africa,” said Stellies coach Gavin Hunt this week. “But there are contractual circumstances that come into play. There has been a lot of media speculation and I am sure in the next day or two we will hear some more.” Da Cruz, meanwhile, has been talking about bringing in versatile forwards who can play in more than one position. And in that sense, Phili certainly fits the bill. ‘I like players who can play in different positions’ “In modern football I like players who can play in different positions,” said Da Cruz. “PSG have that, players who can play in different positions. I prefer to speak about player profiles than player positions.”