Kaizer Chiefs have not been with their head coach, Nasreddine Nabi, since the start of the season.
The 60-year-old Tunisian mentor left the country to attend a family emergency earlier this month, leaving his assistant Khalil Ben Youssef in charge. In his absence, Chiefs have won their opening two league games and top the Betway Premiership.
Ben Youssef said the Kaizer Chiefs coach is always in contact with the technical team despite being away.
“I think if the coach is here or is not here… we are technical staff, all of us are familiar, we work together, we keep in contact every day,” he told the media.
Kaizer Chiefs winning without Nabi
“Every training session we discuss, we meet via Zoom with the technical staff to discuss all the plans.
“We prepare the team together; Yes, physically, Coach Nabi is not here, but he’s with us, we work together, we are a team.
“We help each other, and we don’t think about who is not here, who is here – all technical staff work together,” Ben Youssef concluded.
Nabi was in charge during Kaizer Chiefs’ pre-season in the Netherlands, where the team lost four matches. His last game on the touchline was against Asante Kotoko in the Toyota Cup.
Having missed two matches this season, Nabi is set to miss Amakhosi’s third league match against Richards Bay on Tuesday. The club have not announced when the coach will return but there has been speculation that he might be back for the Mamelodi Sundowns match.
Nabi became the first coach to lift a trophy for Kaizer Chiefs in 10 years. He did so by winning the Nedbank Cup.
Will Nabi ever return to South Africa?
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