Kaizer Chiefs sporting director Kaizer Motaung Junior says the players have to get out of their comfort zone in preparation for next season.

Amakhosi are holding camp in Apeldoorn, a city in the Netherlands from 3 to 19 July.

Last season, Chiefs camped in Turkey and this year opted for the Netherlands.

“It’s about cross-cultures and about having a pre-season at a higher level than we are used to, which also has to do with having really competitive training matches,” explains Motaung Junior.

“Training and playing games in Europe is also about getting players out of their comfort zone. It’s a different environment; it’s about a lot of travelling to the training matches and it’s about preparing the mindset of the players for the upcoming season,” he continues.

“We want the players to test themselves against these really strong sides. They will learn from it and will not only become better as individual players, but, maybe even more important, improve as a team.”

Chiefs will play five friendlies in the Netherlands, starting against Vitesse at Sportpark Driel in Driel on Tuesday, 8 July (kick-off is at 19:00).

“The most important aspect, of course is to get the players fully prepared for the upcoming season, both from a physical and tactical point of view.”