Chiefs eager to reverse second best status to Stars
KAIZER Chiefs will face a familiar cup foe when they travel to Platinum Stars for their Telkom Knockout Last 16 clash at the Moruleng Stadium tomorrow, with the chance to erase some unhappy memories of their opponents in this competition.
Chiefs have met Stars in three of the last four years of the Telkom Knockout and have come out second best on each occasion, a dismal run that coach Steve Komphela will be eager to reverse.
Not least because the hottest seat in South African football is starting to feel very warm after a mixed start to the campaign that included an MTN8 final defeat to Ajax Cape Town and average league form that has yielded just two wins from their opening six games.
An early exit in the Telkom Knockout, albeit against a difficult opponent that currently sits proudly on the top of the league, and the pressure on Komphela will grow ever more intense.
He did praise the performance of his side in last weekend’s 1-1 draw at Ajax Cape Town, as it was arguably their best of the season, but still only provided a point.
Left-back Tsepo Masilela, one of the best performers against Ajax, will be missing through suspension, forcing yet another shuffle in a backfour for Ahly’s under-pressure coach Fathi Mabrouk, who decried the decision to the Egyptian media this week.
“We need our fans to be present against Orlando Pirates. They are a great motivation to the players and they are one of the important factors for success for any team in the world,” he said on the eve of the game.
But even without their ‘12th-man’, there is still a formidable force about Ahly, not least their record as Africa’s best trophy winning club.
But Pirates coach Eric Tinkler has been seeking to play a little mind game by declaring Ahly are not as good as their Cairo rivals Zamalek, who beat Pirates 4-1 in their that has been different in each of Chiefs’ last five games.
But Komphela is likely to give another start to striker Edward Manqele after the forward showed, for 60 minutes against Ajax at least, that he has lost none of his pace and was rewarded with a goal.
Stars coach Cavin Johnson has masterminded a change in fortunes for the North West club after returning to the team towards the end of a dismal last campaign.
Unbeaten in their opening six games, he has them playing the same attacking style that saw them finish second, just a point behind Chiefs, in the 2012-13 league campaign.
Having won the Telkom Knockout in 2013 and reached the final last year, Johnson says the players know what it takes to win and lose games of knockout football.
Pitso Mosimane will hope to continue the revival of his Mamelodi Sundowns side and make it a hattrick of wins in all competitions when they host Chippa United at the Lucas Moripe Stadium tonight.
After back-to-back victories over Ajax and Jomo Cosmos, the pressure from the stands has eased on Mosimane, but he is also aware that a loss here will put his position right back in the spotlight.
Chippa have never won a Telkom Knockout match, nor beaten Sundowns in all competitions, with two defeats and two draws from their four games to date.
BidVest Wits return to Goble Park to face Free State Stars this afternoon in a fixture that will have a sense of déjà vu. The teams met in the league at the same venue a week ago in a game that finished 0-0.
At the same time MTN8 champions Ajax Cape Town visit Lamontville Golden Arrows with a striker shortage as Prince Nxumalo and Tashreeq Morris are sidelined through injury, and Nathan Paulse is suspended.
In the weekend’s final game tomorrow, Bloemfontein Celtic host Mpumalanga Black Aces at the Free State Stadium in a clash between the second and third-placed teams.