On Easter Monday Kaizer Chiefs fans not only celebrated the holiday, but also winning against arch rivals Orlando Pirates in the Telkom Knockout semifinal and advancing to the final of the competition.

For Vladimir Vermezovic there was one more reason to celebrate, as this was his first win in charge of Kaizer Chiefs over Pirates this season.

When congratulated on winning the game and going through to his first major cup final with Kaizer Chiefs, the Chiefs coach had this to say: “I was very happy with the win, but football was the winner at the end of the day”.

He also praised the Durban crowd thanking them for rallying behind the team and attending in numbers.

The Serbian mentor also confessed to the fact that Chiefs missed a lot of goal scoring opportunities in the first half and should have been in the lead going into the half time break. He praised the Kaizer Chiefs players’ performance on the day, saying that they fought like men.

When he was asked about his view on the Telkom Knockout so far, the Chiefs coach said it has been an exciting, but tough competition, as Chiefs only faced tough sides such as Santos, Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates all away from home.

“Orlando Pirates were a better side than Mamelodi Sundowns, but I will only think about Ajax Cape Town tomorrow, since I want to celebrate with my players today for the great win”, said a visibly happy Vermezovic.

The Chiefs coach was confident of a positive result even before match day, and when asked by the media at the press briefing about his team’s chances of winning the Derby and advancing to finals, he simply answered: “Kaizer Chiefs will win against Orlando Pirates, and it’s not a matter of ‘IF’ but ‘WHEN’ we beat them”.

At the Nedbank Cup Draw he jokingly referred to Kaizer Chiefs as the Telkom Knockout Champions, which clearly stated his intentions and faith in his team.

“I’m very excited about playing Ajax in the final, since they are the defending Champions of the Telkom Knockout Cup and because they are also one of the top sides in the PSL,” said Vermezovic, who also went on to say that there are no easy games in cup competitions since teams are always highly motivated for such competitions.

Vermezovic expressed his satisfaction with the current Chiefs squad, which does not include the players currently on national duty.

The Chiefs coach told the media during the post match press conference that the three players are not guaranteed a walk into the squad, as the current players have done well to prove themselves, especially in this competition.

“If the rules of the competition will allow the players coming from the national team camp to play in the final, it would be nice to see them on the bench”, said Vermezovic jokingly.