Kaizer Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter’s bench status for Royal AM game REVEALED!

Kaizer Chiefs prepare to travel to Durban to take on Royal AM in a DStv Premiership fixture this Sunday, and many eyes will be on their travelling personnel.

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Supporters will be watching with a keen eye on whether certain players return, or whether coach Stuart Baxter comes back to take his place on the bench. 

Cases continued to rise at the Chiefs Village

Chiefs continue to suffer from the effects of the Covid-19 virus, with cases reported to have risen to over 40 by the end of last week, according to the club. About two weeks ago, the club announced that as many as 31 cases had hit the team’s village. Later that week, they would go on to ask the Premier Soccer League (PSL) to help with their plight by postponing their next five games. 

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The PSL never responded to Chiefs, however, who then reiterated and confirmed their stance of not honouring their fixture that weekend, a match against Cape Town City at the FNB Stadium. Knowing that Chiefs would not pitch, City travelled all the way to Johannesburg in an effort to get the points through forfeit, but found themselves locked out of the stadium. 

Arrows fixture the last Amakhosi did not honour

Chiefs also failed to honour their fixture away to Golden Arrows last week, but having returned to action Sunday, are expected to honour their latest assignment in Durban. Chiefs saw past a lacklustre Sekhukhune United 2-0, with a few faces missing. One of those faces was that of Baxter, who was seemingly one of the 31 members affected by the virus. 

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With the team having played so well under assistant coach Arthur Zwane, a few Chiefs fan’s would’ve been forgiven for wanting to see the club legend gain momentum with the upcoming fixture as well. A source, however, has confirmed whether that will be possible or if Baxter will return. 

Source confirms Baxter’s bench status

“The coach (Baxter) will be there when the team (Chiefs) plays Royal AM on Sunday. He was supposed to be on the bench in the last game, but the doctor’s advice was that he stays isolated for a few days so that he can fully recover. He was constantly communicating with other members of the technical staff last week, even during the game. But he is not the only one who will be back. Other players who weren’t there during the last game will also be back because they only started training just a day or two before the Sekhukhune match,” confirmed the source speaking to The Citizen. 

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If Baxter does, indeed return then it remains to be seen, how much personnel he returns with as well as how much change he will enforce to Zwane’s line up.