As we near one year since Kaizer Chiefs signed Congolese forward Christian Saile from Zambian side Nchanga Rangers, perhaps the time is ripe to put his impact so far under the magnifying glass. With the club having largely misfired in that time and having struggled in 2023 with a mammoth 17 losses in the calendar year thus far, it's not easy for a forward to excel. How has the lanky, powerful left footer fared and which of the four roles in attack has suited him best? Is he set to be a perennial nearly-man who largely has to impact games off the bench or is there a consistent starting role for him in future? In this feature, Soccer Laduma investigates these key questions with a transfer window on the horizon.
January arrival: Promising signs
Christian Saile Basomboli joined Kaizer Chiefs on the 19th of January 2023 on a three-and-a-half-year deal. He had been captain of his side in Zambia, Nchanga Rangers, and was touted as a solution to the club's scoring woes. He joined an attack that was struggling desperately with no goals scored in the three fixtures before his debut: losing 1-0 at home to both Sekhukhune United and Mamelodi Sundowns, with a 4-0 loss at Ama- Zulu FC sandwiched between those defeats on their own turf. His impact was instant in the famous Black and Gold jersey. On his debut, he replaced Bonfils-Caleb Bimenyimana in the 55th minute of an away game at Royal AM. His 85th-minute assist showed what he can bring: power, one-versus-one danger and two-footed ability. The Congolese isolated Thabo Matlaba, beat him on the outside with a stepover and provided a perfect cross with his weaker right foot for Ashley Du Preez to score. Although he didn't register another assist in the coming months, he did score three goals in his 1,240 minutes of time on the pitch. Saile's standout performance came in the 2-0 win at Maritzburg United in the Nedbank Cup, where he proved a relentless thorn in the flesh of the opponents. He eventually netted a one-yard finish in extra time, but his overall display was amongst the best we've seen from an Amakhosi forward in the last couple of years. He constantly linked play from a mobile number nine position, drifting out to the right to cause nightmares for recent Bafana Bafana squad member, Bradley Cross. His two other goals showed his ability too. Against the Team of Choice in the league, he picked the ball up deep, drove at the defence and fired home from 25 yards. His final strike was a side-footed finish to equalise against Moroka Swallows from a freekick. After his goal in the cup encounter, coach Arthur Zwane praised the player's mentality and work-rate, saying, "I think for any striker, it is always good when you score goals. Christian is a soldier of note and we expect more from him. He's got this never-say-die attitude and that's what we want. He never stops running and he never stopped working hard on and off the ball. That's why he ended up scoring."
Limp left winger
Last season ended on a sour note for the well-built attacker. Zwane shifted him to the left wing for the Nedbank Cup semi-final against rivals Orlando Pirates with Dillan Solomons playing as a right winger. Saile struggled with his defensive duties and lost Monnapule Saleng's run for the opening goal. In addition, he missed two clear-cut chances in the defeat and famously drew the ire of the Glamour Boys faithful. The coach persisted with him on the left in a 1-0 loss to SuperSport United a week later. Saile missed one big chance in that defeat from his only shot and missed one clear chance. The season ended on a further negative vibe with a 1-0 home loss to Cape Town City. He had five of the Soweto giants' 21 shots that day, but most were speculative efforts from his now ill-suited left winger position.
Watching Brief: From 79% to 44%
After his largely positive impact in the 2022/23 season, it was expected that Saile would kick on this season to greater heights. In his four months last term, he played 79% of the available minutes with 1,230 minutes onthe pitch and started 14 of the 17 games after his acquisition. Yes, injuries to Khama Billiat and Keagan Dolly played a big part, but he was seemingly developing into an important player. This term has been very different, however! With coach Molefi Ntseki and now coach Cavin Johnson at the helm, he has started a paltry five of the 16 matches this campaign. The transfer window saw five attacking players arrive and Saile has paid the price. Can anyone argue that Tebogo Potsane has proven an upgrade on the Congolese attacker? Or Jasond Gonzalez? Those minutes from the duo could have been diverted to Saile. When he has been given minutes, he has looked good when used down the right. It was his deep cross with his right foot that Edson Castillo turned home in the win against Cape Town City in the MTN8 quarter-final. He also scored a header against Stellenbosch FC and a right-footed finish against Cape Town Spurs, so all of his goal involvements have come against Mother City clubs and all from the substitutes bench. This is a potential match winner who is being used as an impact player when, in fact, Amakhosi are desperate for inspiration in the first half of fixtures.
Paying for his versatility!
Every squad needs versatile or multi-functional players, but perhaps the Congolese is paying for his adaptability. Since arriving, we've seen him as a right winger, a left winger, a number nine and also just behind a single striker. Aside from being able to play in different areas, we see a player who can score headers, right-footed goals and left-footed goals. He can run behind defences, take players on with dribbling, compete in the air, drop off to link play or shoot from long distance. Basically, he brings bits of what Dolly, Du Preez and Pule Mmodi specialise in, without being a master at any of them. What is he best at though? Without doubt, his best role is down the right wing or as a split striker who runs from a central role into the right-hand channel. His best technical aspects are his ability to beat players on the flank with powerful changes of direction and speed. Whilst he can do a job up front when Du Preez is absent, and with Ranga Chivaviro and Gonzalez flattering to deceive, it's not the way to see the best of him.
Needs a run of starts
Some players can enter matches from the bench and make an impact. Saile is one of those players. He also appears to be someone who struggles to play consistently from the start if he is in and out of the XI. On the opening day, he gave a mixed display in the 0-0 draw against Chippa United. No player on the pitch lost more duels than him (11), whilst he managed two shots in 90 minutes on the field. Against TS Galaxy, he played as a striker from the 29th minute when Chivaviro went off injured. His hour of action saw him touch the ball a measly 20 times. At the end of Ntseki's reign, he finally got handed a run of starts, but he didn't really take those opportunities. He did very little against Matsantsantsa in a pure front three, but he was good in the 2-1 win against Sekhukhune, setting up two chances from the right wing. The Naturena-based side had 19 shots in the win on one of the rare occasions we've seen all of Mmodi, Du Preez and Saile start together and also in their best positions. The team put up 18 shots in his next start, a 1-0 loss to the Citizens as a low block largely stopped Saile from impacting proceedings. In Johnson's first game in charge, Saile played as a central striker and had 11 box touches and six shots in a threatening display but one where we never saw him get to dribble as he was always playing back to goal in a match where Chiefs had 22 shots.
Summary – Start him wide, Cavin!
Every bit of evidence we have over 10 calendar months tells us that Saile is a really good player who Amakhosi are wasting right now. This is the man whose pace caused Innocent Maela to cut him down for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity in a Soweto Derby but is also the same guy who should have been red-carded in that fixture. He is someone who has flattered to deceive when asked to play like a 2016/17 Aubrey Ngoma on the left. Johnson has so far shown a preference for a narrow Christmas tree shape with two number 10s off the striker. Mmodi and Saile are the victims of this curious tactical structure. It makes no sense to leave him on the bench when Du Preez is out injured and the duo could be a nightmare to face if fielded at the same time more often, especially with Dolly behind them. Maybe that is the way to go… Saile as one of two strikers, working the right channel, with Dolly as the playmaker. Either way, the Soweto giants can't afford to leave the Congolese on the bench right now with the amount of pace and power he offers.
