“Football Language Is Universal” – Miguel Rejects Language Barrier Excuses For Chiefs Slump
Kaizer Chiefs defender Inacio Miguel has leapt to the defence of coach Fernando da Cruz, dismissing claims that a language barrier and translation issues are responsible for Amakhosi’s ongoing struggles.
The Angolan defender insisted that even world-class tacticians like José Mourinho or Pep Guardiola would fail to turn things around if the players on the pitch do not step up and take responsibility.
During Da Cruz’s maiden press conference, Chiefs media manager Vina Maphosa stated that it would be the first and last time the French mentor required an interpreter.
However, 10 matches into his tenure, Da Cruz continues to rely on a translator for media briefings, leading to growing speculation that tactical instructions are getting lost in translation.
The situation stands in contrast to former coach Nasreddine Nabi, who arrived at the start of the 2024/25 season and departed in October. While assistant Cédric Kaze frequently translated for him, Nabi consistently made an effort to communicate directly in English. Da Cruz, by contrast, has yet to attempt public briefings in English.
The intense scrutiny comes as Da Cruz faces three high-stakes fixtures in quick succession. Chiefs must overturn a 1-0 deficit against Red Arrows in their CAF Confederation Cup second preliminary round, second-leg clash at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Friday.
Following their continental duty, Amakhosi will host TS Galaxy in the Carling Knockout Round of 16 at FNB Stadium on Tuesday, before taking on fierce rivals Orlando Pirates in a sold-out Soweto Derby next Saturday.
With Chiefs winless in their last four matches across all competitions, failure to advance in the CAF Confederation Cup and Carling Knockout could spell the end of Da Cruz’s tenure at Naturena.
Despite the growing pressure, Miguel firmly shut down suggestions of internal miscommunication.
“No, obviously not,” said Miguel.
“The language of football is universal. You don’t need to speak; football talks for itself. It’s easy to judge coaches and staff, but in the end, we players are the ones on the field.
“It is my responsibility, starting with me. You can bring Mourinho, you can bring Guardiola, but if we as players don’t fight, if we don’t commit on the field, it doesn’t matter if the coach speaks Chinese, Japanese or Portuguese, because, at the end of the day, it is our actions that determine the results on the field.
“For me, there is no language barrier between the coach and the players.”
Miguel urged his teammates to take ownership of their poor run of form rather than hide behind off-pitch narratives.
“Everything is very clear. It is just a matter of us changing our behaviour and being honest with ourselves that we are not good enough. We have not been good enough,” he said.
“I’m not here to find excuses, and for me, the language barrier is just an excuse for something that is not working. We have to do better, period.
“There is no language barrier between the coach and us in terms of understanding the game plan and the coach’s ideas. That is very clear.
“It is up to us, and up to me, to do better. We are not doing enough. I place that responsibility on my teammates and everybody else, saying, ‘Come on, gents, we have to do better.’
“We can do better; we have done better. It is just a phase, and I hope that we can improve, starting on Friday.”
