Komphela digs his heels in as fans bellow for his head

● Embattled Kaizer Chiefs coach Steve Komphela says he is not going anywhere.

Komphela has faced a barrage of criticism from irate Chiefs fans since the start of the season‚ but the besieged coach says he has no intention of throwing in the towel.

“Winners never quit and quitters never win‚” he said yesterday.

“You don’t go around saying, ‘Eish‚ I am not making a breakthrough’. The thought of quitting never crossed my mind.”

A section of the Chiefs fans have continued to voice their displeasure with Komphela’s regime for weeks now and some have gone as far as verbally abusing the coach and pelting him with missiles after games.

Komphela believes he and Stuart Baxter could sit down and have an interesting chat about their similar turmoil.

“He is going through more or less what I am going through. And maybe the two of us could have a cup of coffee. That could go down well with the two of us.

“I wish him well‚ because I know what he is going through.”

Back-to-back defeats against Cape Verde have seen Baxter heavily criticised and left Bafana needing victories from their last three games to stand a chance of reaching the World Cup in Russia next year.

Chiefs‚ after two seasons without a trophy under Komphela‚ have started the season knocked out of the MTN8 in the opening round and with only two wins from seven PSL games.

Komphela has exited numerous stadiums in the company of security guards‚ but the Chiefs mentor is adamant he is not going anywhere. STEVE KOMPHELA Kaizer Chiefs coach

“I am looking more at the project here. The excitement of the challenge is that you want to break through.

“Maybe I am wired differently‚ which is why I am in this position.

“Every coach is abnormal‚ which is why you will have coaches going through fire and the rest of the world asking if he can’t see the fire‚” he said‚ as the club prepared for a Macufe Cup tie against Bloemfontein Celtic on Sunday.

Komphela said he understood the Kaizer Chiefs fans’ frustration and was aware that they were tired of hearing excuses.

“There are two things in football‚ results and reasons‚” he said.

“I am sure that people are tired of reasons. We are tired. There have been too many reasons‚ for too long‚ and people don’t need that.”

Komphela admitted that he would take a win from anywhere‚ even from their friendly Macufe Cup clash against Celtic on Sunday afternoon.

“We need results in the Macufe Cup so that we get our confidence back,” he said.

“There have been too many reasons for too long”