AMAZULU FOCUSED ON DOWNING BAROKA
AMAZULU have hovered around the basement of the standings for too long this season, and that should certainly ring the alarm bells for the Durban-based Premiership relegation candidates.
But there seems to be a degree of optimism that remains in the Usuthu camp that they can still climb out of the sticky situation and survive to fight another season in the PSL.
There is no better chance for AmaZulu than getting one over fellow strugglers Baroka FC, a club they will meet on Saturday at Lucas Moripe Stadium (1.30pm kick-off).
Usuthu are second from bottom of the 16-team table while Baroka are 13th. The two sides are tied on 23 points after an identical number of games (24) with only goal difference separating them.
AmaZulu centre-back Tapelo Nyongo is one of the players who believes that the Baroka match is a perfect platform to set the tone for the rest of the season.
“This (game) is more like a cup final for us. The first 15 minutes will be key. We have to start well,” a determined Nyongo elaborated.
Baroka are still limping after they were thumped 3-0 by Bloemfontein Celtic in the semi-finals of the Nedbank Cup at Orlando Stadium last weekend.
“It is make or break for us, I don’t want to lie. We can’t afford any more slip-ups, our careers are at stake.
“There’s small margins between being in the Premier Soccer League and GladAfrica Championship. Winning on Saturday will play a huge role in our mission to avoid relegation,” Nyongo detailed.
Usuthu won their last game against Kaizer Chiefs before the coronavirus pandemic halted the PSL schedule.
“They (Baroka) are our direct rivals. If we win against them, we will go above them and they will go below us. A victory will mean we have two teams behind us and we will focus on those that are above us,” Nyongo explained.
Usuthu will have reason to believe they can overwhelm Bakgakga after their shock win over log leaders Chiefs.
“The game against Chiefs before the lockdown was a confidence booster. We are hoping to build from that. We’ve proven that we can get results away from home and we will be looking to do just that in our last matches,” Nyongo stated.
Baroka, however, will be no easy meat for AmaZulu as they also have a proud record of rising against the odds. This is the team that beat Orlando Pirates to lift the Telkom Knockout cup in 2018.
A draw won’t be a bad result for Baroka but there’s no doubt that they will be looking for maximum points.
Time is running out for both sides. If they want to avoid relegation they have to start collecting points as soon as possible.