Sports

Stuart Baxter Says Playing Khama Billiat in the Final Was a "Huge Gamble" for Kaizer Chiefs

Monday, July 19, 2021 at 10:06 AM by Thando Mpembe

Stuart Baxter has admitted that bringing Khama Billiat on during the final was a big gamble on his part
Desperate for attacking options, Baxter put the forward on but it ended up not paying off the way he would've liked
Kaizer Chiefs lost 3-0 to Al Ahly in the CAF Champions League final, disappointing fans who obviously wanted them to win

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Following Kaizer Chiefs' 3-0 defeat to Al Ahly in the CAF Champions League final on Saturday, head coach Stuart Baxter stated that his choice to bring Khama Billiat in was a gamble.

Baxter reacted to Happy Mashiane's red card on the stroke of half-time at the Mohamed V Stadium by taking Billiat off the bench at the start of the second half.

Pitso Mosimane's team, on the other hand, took advantage of the additional man and switched up their playing flair with incredible speed.

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Stuart Baxter, Khama Billiat, Kaizer Chiefs, Ah Ahly, CAF Champions League, gamble — Stuart Baxter knew that bringing Khama Billiat on would be a gamble because of his lack of playing time. Image: @kcfcofficial, @khamabilliat
Source: Instagram

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"It's a cup final, you can't go in and play 4-4-1 and only defend, so we went with a 4-3-2 and brought in Khama, which was a gamble really, because he's not played for so long," said Baxter according to News24.

Baxter also said that Kaizer Chiefs stood no chance once Happy Mashiane was sent off at the stroke of halftime. According to Baxter, this is what caused them to lose a grip on the match.

As quoted by SowetanLIVE, Baxter said:

“The goals that we gave away were poor goals. If we defend properly and normally, we can extend that time when they don’t score and increase the frustration for them."

Daniel Akpeyi breaks silence on painful loss to Al Ahly in the final

Briefly News previously reported that Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi took to social media to reflect on their loss to Al Ahly in the CAF Champions League final.