Itumeleng Khune pleads for time to perfect Arthur Zwane's Kaizer Chiefs project

Khune was speaking to the media ahead of this weekend’s Soweto Derby against arch-rivals Orlando Pirates at FNB Stadium. 

Chiefs have not won any silverware in eight years now, and the Nedbank Cup is their last realistic chance to end that drought this season. 

The club’s fan base, which is the largest in the country by numbers, has grown impatient with Zwane and the team’s inconsistent results, but Khune has called for patience.

"All I have to say to our fans, or our supporters I should say, yes, we've been asking for patience, but again they need to understand there have been different coaches in the past seasons because most of the time it's what they recommend to the management," said Khune.

"I don't know how they [management] make the decisions but the club has delivered on certain coaches that the fans or supporters have recommended, and the number of players that they've wanted to come in.

"So, everyone who has come in needs time to settle. We understand that Kaizer Chiefs is not the [kind of] club to wait, it's a club where we have to play every match to win, every [piece of] silverware we need to challenge for.

"But again, when you have players that are new in the setup, they don't understand the setup, it's our role and responsibility as leaders and players who have been there for long to guide them.

"But it's never that easy and it won't take just one day for that to turn around, it will take quite some time."

Chiefs go into this Saturday's Soweto Derby against archrivals Orlando Pirates on the back of a harrowing 3-2 defeat to Golden Arrows, with fans having shown frustration by booing both the coach and the team off the Mbombela Stadium pitch on Sunday.