Lebusa: Ajax’s spirit is still high despite current woes
THE MOTHER CITY’S two PSL clubs continue their quest to achieve their objectives, albeit at opposite ends of the league standings. Cape Town City are loftily perched, second on the log with 30 points, four behind leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, while Ajax Cape Town are precariously placed second-from-bottom, on 16 points.
On Friday night, Ajax host Free State Stars in a league fixture at Cape Town Stadium (8pm kickoff). On Sunday, City are on the road when they tackle Bloemfontein Celtic at the Dr Molemela Stadium (3.30pm kickoff). It’s the Cape against the Free State – and it should make for some tough,competitive football, especially considering how tight things are in the PSL this season, at both ends of the league table.
Ajax are obviously still in mourning after yet another defeat in the Cape derby. Having gone down 1-0 to arch-rivals City at the weekend, head coach Muhsin Ertugral will have been hard at work at training this week. In his post-derby interview, the new coach spoke about the need to have more training sessions with his players, in order to bring across his ideas and inculcate in his squad the direction he requires.
Now, with a difficult task against fourthplaced Stars, victory is paramount. Considering their parlous situation, Ajax can ill-afford another loss. Left-back Mosa Lebusa is fully aware of the enormity of the job at hand, but he’s confident the club have the ability to turn things around.
“It’s a tough one against Stars,” said Lebusa. “At this stage, where we are on the log, there are no easy games. Stars are in good form, they are up there on the table, and we are expecting a difficult game. For us, though, nothing but three points will do, and that is what our focus will be.”
Lebusa was quick to emphasise that, despite Ajax’s current woes, the spirit was still high, and the arrival of Ertugral had brought a new dimension to the team.
“We are still positive,” said the Ajax captain. “Nobody’s head has dropped – we know we still have 12 games to steer the club to safety and we are confident we can achieve it. We are prepared to work very hard and, if we trust each other, I’m sure that we can get to the objective we have set ourselves. The way things are on the PSL log, if you win three games in a row, you could be right up there in the top half.
“As for Muhsin, I’ve played under him before and I know what he expects. You can already see that we are a lot more offensive now; we get numbers into the box and the focus is on attacking. At the same time, he’s also reminded the squad of the need to be solid and organised at the back because you can’t just go forward and forget about defensive duties. I have to say it’s good to have Muhsin back at the club.”
Meanwhile, over in the blue half of the Cape, City have added yet another attacker to their squad, in a bid to bring more attacking thrust and impetus to the team. There’s no doubt that, while City may be among the title-challengers, if they are to maintain their quest, then they are going to have to score more goals.
Ugandan international forward Allan Kateregga, the signing announced by City yesterday, has been brought in for this purpose, having impressed coach Benni McCarthy. Kateregga, who has played for AFC Leopards in Kenya and for top Ugandan side KCCA FC, penned a three-year deal with the Cape club.
Club boss John Comitis said: “I sat with Benni and we discussed the need for a left-footed playmaker and winger who could add something unique going forward. There were a few options for us in the market, but, once Benni saw Kateregga play, he just simply said ‘this is the one’.
“Kateregga has unique technical ability and is incredibly comfortable on the ball. He can interchange freely as a left or right wing as well as a playmaker, and is able to create and score wherever he plays. He’s a very positive and happy person on and off the field, so he’ll fit in very well at City.”
As for the possibility of signing former Bafana Bafana captain Steven Pienaar, Comitis said he had a brief chat with the player during the weekend’s Cape derby.
“Before I even set up any meeting with Pienaar, I have to sit down with Benni to see if it’s an option he will be interested in,” said the City boss. “At the moment, we are quite strong in midfield, so we will have to consider it carefully.”