Chilli Boys must turn up the heat in Leopards’ den
It will be tough for Chippa United to take on Black Leopards in front of an intimidating crowd in an Absa Premiership fixture at the Thohoyandou Stadium in Limpopo on Sunday, coach Clinton Larsen said.
He said his players would have to be at their best to get a result against the Leopards.
The Chilli Boys’ six-match unbeaten run was halted by SuperSport United on Sunday when they lost 1-0 to the Pretoria side at the Sisa Dukashe Stadium in East London.
Both sides are in need of the points, but Leopards will have the upper hand with the backing of their vocal supporters on match day.
Larsen said Chippa would go into the game as the underdogs.
“We have seen in recent games how intimidating the atmosphere [at Thohoyandou Stadium] can be, which is nice,” the former Bloemfontein Celtic coach said.
“You want to play in front of a packed house.
“I think as footballers we have always wanted that and that is what you get there.
“So there will be a good atmosphere.
“I think as Chippa United and sitting third from the bottom and going to Thohoyandou we will be underdogs and the pressure will be on them. That could play into our hands. “We will go there and give them respect, but we won’t fear them.
“We have proven in the last couple of weeks that when we are at our best, we can beat anybody.
“We will need to be at our best to get a result against an ever-improving Black Leopards team,” Larsen said.
The Chilli Boys are third from bottom of the log after collecting 20 points from 22 games.
They are just above the relegation playoff spot on goal difference and three points away from automatic demotion. Chippa are level on points with Free State Stars, who are also on 20 points.
Asked if he was under pressure, the coach said: “We cannot panic. “Five weeks ago, we were panicking and we have had eight points since then.
“We have got our small targets that we have set for ourselves. “After beating Maritzburg United, we had 12 games to play – and if we collect five points for every three games that we play, then we will have 35 points at the end of the season.”