New Kaizer Chiefs coach Vladimir Vermezovic has been giving Amakhosi fans a taste of what they can expect during his tenure with the club.

The 45-year-old Serbian has promised a mix of organised defensive play and the entertaining, skillful football which has made the Glamour Boys famous across Africa.

“My philosophy is to have a team with a strong defence, with fast transition when going forward,” Vermezovic said. “There is absolutely no jokes in our first third of the field; in that we will have serious players and then in the next third can have a few jokes. In the last third we will then have players who dribble because fans obviously come to the stadium for entertainment and so they have to see beautiful football.”

The former Yugoslavia international has also spelt out his objectives, saying he will give chances to youngsters at the club.

“This year Chiefs will be better than last year. The objective is to win the title within the next two years. For the future the objective is to develop our own players though they will have to work harder.
“When I have time I will be watching our Under-19 team more often. We need to have youngsters for progression. Youngsters don’t win you titles in serious Leagues like we want to, so we need a combination that benefits the team.”

Vermezovic, who will celebrate his 46th birthday on June 30, also gave Chiefs fans a glimpse into his impressive pedigree.

“I have coached at Partizan, the greatest club in Serbia over the past 15-20 years. I started off at youth level then moved on to the first team in 2004 where I won the League without losing a single game. We also played in the UEFA Cup that same year, only missing out on qualifying for the Champions League at the last stage. So that should make you know that I am a coach for the big clubs and not small clubs.”

Chiefs will open their 2009 Vodacom Challenge campaign on Tuesday, 21 July against Manchester City at Durban’s Absa Stadium (kick-off 20h15 SAT).