Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix

PASSIONATE BUCCANEER: Irvin Khoza, the man behind the Orlando Pirates success story. Picture: Muzi Ntombela / BackpagePix

Matshelane Mamabolo

On the eve of his club’s first step towards adding a second star on their jersey, Orlando Pirates chairman Irvin Khoza spoke of the need for a South African club to win the Caf Champions League as imperative.

“We can’t say we have the best league in Africa and not win the Champions League,” said the man who also doubles up as chairman of the Premier Soccer League. Orlando Pirates start their campaign with a preliminary round clash against Angola champions Recreativo de Lobilo in Port Elizabeth tomorrow afternoon. In a wide- ranging interview with the Saturday Star, Khoza also spoke about what led to Pirates’ success in the same competition back in 1995.

KHOZA ON THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

MM: You’ve made it clear that you’d love nothing less than seeing Pirates win this year’s Champions League. What makes you want the title so much?

IK: It’s a wish that we progress further in the competition and eventually win it. This competition is now a big thing, with the opportunity to play in the Club World Cup. Professional club football is all about the Champions League, winning it is the ultimate goal for every club and every player. You see it in Europe, players change clubs solely for the purpose of putting themselves in line to win the Champions League. (Thierry) Henry went to Barcelona not because he no longer wanted to play for Arsenal but because he wanted a Champions League medal. (Steve) MacMannaman left Liverpool for (Real) Madrid for the same reason. It’s slowly becoming the same here in Africa because winning the Champions League presents the winners an opportunity to market themselves to the world through the Club World Cup.

MM: Do you have what it takes to go all the way this year?

IK: In South Africa we’re at a disadvantage in Caf competitions because of our calendar (the time the league is played – August to May). I have signed a number of good players but they can’t play in the Champions League because the competition’s player registration period has long passed. It is for this reason that as a league we’ve decided to change our calendar from 2014 (to run from January to November). Our hope is that we progress further in the competition so we can then register these players in the second registration period.

MM: Do the players realise the impact success in the Champions League might have on their careers?

IK: They’ve come to understand the importance of that star. A lot of them are still young and we’ve had to make them aware of what it would mean to win in Africa. Pirates is an institution, a club full of history and while this generation has made its own history with their domestic success (Pirates are currently the holders of all four PSL trophies), they will immortalise their names by winning the Champions League. Currently the class of 1995 is the yardstick.

MM: That was a special group of players. How does the current one compare?

IK: I don’t think it’s fair to compare. I always say you can’t dry today’s washing with tomorrow’s sun. Just like everything else in life, football changes and circumstances are always different. You must remember that we were going into continental football for the first time that year. And we made history by becoming the first team to win it at the first attempt (except, of course, the inaugural winners), and also the first team from Anglophone Africa to win it.

MM: But surely there must be lessons from back in 1995 that might come in handy this year?

IK: Of course there are. Decisiveness was key in that campaign. As a leader I had to make decisions on the spot and had I not done that, we would not have been as successful.

MM: And what are some of those decisions?

IK: Leaving my coach (Joe Frickleton) behind for the second leg of the final and letting his assistant (the late Ronald Mkhandawire) take charge was the best one. Joe had pessimistic tendencies and I did not want that rubbing off on my players. We’d drawn the first leg 2-2 and it became clear he did not think we would go to Abidjan and get the result as he went to the papers and complained of problems with the players. I could not have that and I left him behind.

MM: That clearly worked. Were there other decisive actions you had to take that helped bring success?

IK: In Abidjan, I had to dig into my pocket and pay for a five-star hotel because the one we’d been given was clearly not conducive to our success. It was clear they were setting us up for failure. First, we were kept on the airport tarmac in steamy heat for two hours and then clearing customs took three hours. As if that was not bad enough, we arrived to a hotel teeming with bats and prostitutes. I could not have my players sleep in such bad conditions so I found a five-star hotel which was where the Caf officials were staying. And by Caf rules, teams should not stay with the officials, but I insisted we stay there. I had done the same in the earlier round in Nigeria where they booked us into a hotel that had such loud music there was no way the players would have got any sleep.

MM: South Africa’s recent poor showing in Caf competitions does not help your course though?

IK: It does not, because now, for the first time, we have a tough preliminary stage draw. First we play a team from Angola and next one from Nigeria if we progress. We really have to get our clubs playing in continental competition on a regular basis and doing well. We say we have the best league on the continent. We have to justify that success in the Champions League.

lRead Part II of the Khoza interview next week, when he talks about why and how he turned Pirates into the dominant force in local football