I have to make that a habit

When Arthur Zwane finally took a leap of faith and left Kaizer Chiefs after spending over 20 years at the club, it came as a surprise to many. He was an Amakhosi man through and through, but change and, more importantly, growth were needed. He stepped up to take a co-coaching role at AmaZulu FC but finished last season as the main man on the bench, leading the KZN outfit to a sixth-place finish. In this interview with Soccer Laduma's Tshepang Mailwane, during the recent Betway Premiership launch, Zwane talks about his journey in the game and his ambitions of leading Usuthu back to where they belong.

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Tshepang Mailwane: Hello coach, it's great to have a chat with you. This is the first time you are going into a second season as head coach at a topflight club, which speaks to how well you did at AmaZulu last season. How are you feeling about this?

Arthur Zwane: Look, as coaches we always want to grow. We want to be better. Obviously, I give my gratitude to the club and the board and the president (Sandile Zungu) for giving me this opportunity and the support that they are giving me. I am short of nothing, to be honest. I am happy and it's just for us now to take this team to where it belongs. I thank God and I thank everyone that has been behind me through thick and thin. What else can I say? I am just happy that I am one of the 16 coaches in the Betway Premiership, and I have to make it a habit that every season I am part of the setup (of coaches in the topflight).

TM: You say you want to take this team to where it belongs. Where is that?

AZ: AmaZulu, as a club, have a rich history. They used to compete with the big guns in the past, in the 80s and 90s. Obviously, they ran out of steam as time went on, but we have identified the things that could be the major problems. We are working on those things, and we are trying to improve all those things, off the field as well. As soon as we get those things right, I think you will see a change. You must have seen the change already. We are trying to inject positive energy into the squad with young guns, with a mix of senior players who are also bringing in their experience to help the young ones settle in. We are blessed, to be honest. The only thing is for us to get positive results and do better than last season. It's not going to be an easy season because we are trying to find ourselves, but we will give our best in every game.

TM: Coming into this season, what type of conversations were you having with president Sandile Zungu on where the team has to finish in the league?