WHAT’S ON DERBY
MILUTIN “MICHO” SREDOJEVIC might have already propelled his Orlando Pirates team to three successive wins over their arch-rivals Kaizer Chiefs, but he is adamant that it will be naive of them to think that they have already beaten their neighbours ahead of tomorrow’s Soweto derby at FNB Stadium.
Two of Pirates’ wins against Chiefs last year were in the PSL, while one was in the Telkom Knockout. Furthermore, Pirates’ wins were obtained when Amakhosi were under the tenure of two different coaches who possessed different acumen. In April last year, the Sea Robbers bagged three points against Steve Komphela’s Chiefs who played organised football. While, their last two triumphs were at the expense of Italian tactician Giovanni Solinas who was more focused and concerned about Chiefs’ attacking margins. Enter Ernst Middendorp. Sredojevic is worried that Chiefs possesses a wealth of experience from all these knowledgeable coaches.
“They have a top-class combination of the defensive acumen of coach Steve Komphela and attacking part of Giovanni Solinas, now we have to find a balance that will match their abilities,” Sredojevic,
pictured, said. “For us it’s like we are preparing for an exam, but that was prepared by two different professors.”
On paper though, Pirates are favourites to walk away with the win tomorrow at what is scheduled to be a sold-out contest at the calabash.
The Sea Robbers have been a force to be reckoned with both locally and in continental football. They are currently third on the league standings with 32 points from 18 matches, while they trail log leaders Wits by five points. On the continental front, so far they’ve also done the business as they are top of Group
B – where they also have defending champions Esperance in their group. The Soweto derby is a different proposition though, as it brings South Africa to a standstill, but the Serbian-born coach is banking on Pirates’ tactics to trump their opposition’s.
“Practically, whatever that has been behind the scenes we need to throw on the field,” Sredojevic said. “The power that is given to us is to make our supporters happy – as they live their lives for us. We know what this derby means to them and we want to come out to play as we won’t leave any stone unturned. It will be a very tough match and details will decide the match, but we want them to decide on our side. (But overall) let the footballer be the winner and we’ll see who’ll do better.”
Realistically, three points for the Bucs against their arch-rivals will be a huge morale booster’s in their quest to challenge for the league title this season. For Sredojevic it is also about putting an end to a dark cloud that seems to be engulfing the Serbian’s rein at Pirates. Sredojevic’s fellow compatriot Kostadin Papic also played beautiful football that was appeasing to the eye of the Bucs’ faithful, but subsequently failed to win a trophy during his tenure back in the early 2000s.
“In 25 years of coaching, I’ve strived under a much higher pressure,” Sredojevic said. “It’s not about me as I am a soldier and servant of the club. I am just giving all the best so that we can get the