Khune lauds Baxter heroics

"He is a very good coach and he is one of the best coaches I have ever worked with," Khune said at the club's training base in Naturena on Thursday.

"He can benefit the country if he had to move. I remember back in the days when I was playing for the under-23 national team. "He taught our coach back then Steve Komphela a lot. With the approach and the philosophy I could see the similarities in how the under-23 were playing and how the senior team played."

Chiefs captain, Khune, said the players at the club would respect Baxter's decision if he left the club to take up the Safa top job.

"He is still the Chiefs coach and he will decide his future, but we would like him to stay," Khune said.

"If he had to move on we will have to respect his decision."

The 60-year-old Briton has been touted as one of the top candidates for the job.

Khune said Baxter recently addressed the team where he promised he would inform them first if he decided to leave Chiefs.

With less than two weeks to go before the start of the campaign, Chiefs would be in a precarious position should Baxter jump ship.

The Soweto giants open their season with an MTN8 clash against Mpumalanga Black Aces on August 3.

Amakhosi square off against perennial foes Orlando Pirates in the Carling Black Label Cup on Saturday at the FNB Stadium.

Khune said Chiefs could not afford to be consumed by the Baxter rumours and they were focused on claiming victory over their rivals.

"For now I have to focus on the game. I can't have my mind on Safa while I have such a big game to prepare."

The new Bafana coach will be announced on Saturday at Safa House, only a stone's throw away from where Chiefs and Pirates will do battle.

The appointment of the technical director will be made at a later stage in the coming weeks.

(File photo:Gallo Images)