Team of Choice are desperate to break their Chiefs hoodoo
MARITZBURG United are desperate to break their hoodoo against Kaizer Chiefs and earn that elusive first victory in the new season. The Team of Choice and Amakhosi will meet tonight at
8pm in what promises to be a fascinating Absa Premiership clash at Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg.
Maritzburg are winless after having played three matches in all competitions.
Not only are they searching for their first win in the new season but they are also gunning for their first victory against Amakhosi in three years.
Chiefs have dominated Maritzburg in the past seven matches. Last season they completed the double over the Team of Choice. They have beaten them six times in a row since 2015. The last time that the Midlands side got the better of Chiefs was back in 2015. Since that encounter, their best results against Chiefs was a 1-1 stalemate the same year.
Home side defender Rushine De Reuck has vowed to help his team beat Chiefs and get that monkey off their back: “We are positive. We are well aware we haven’t won against Chiefs in a while but we are not panicking. We will give our all. We know that it is not going to be easy.
“Chiefs is one of the biggest teams in Africa. They have good quality players but we are up for the challenge. We want to kick-start our season by getting our first win. Our aim is to reward our supporters with what they deserve which is a positive result,” De Reuck said yesterday.
United have struggled to keep clean sheets in their first three matches so far this season. They conceded two goals each against Lamontville Golden Arrows and Free State Stars in their opening league fixtures. De Reuck and his teammates also failed to keep Cape Town City at bay this past weekend as they lost 1-0 in the MTN8 quarter-finals.
“Teams have been catching us on the counter-attack because we have been going all out in our matches. We need to be cautious against Chiefs. We will strive to get a clean sheet and use our chances on the opposite end,” he added.