Battle of the north pits coaches desperate for win
Nyirenda and Masutha face off
The Limpopo derby between Black Leopards and Baroka at Thohoyandou Stadium tomorrow (7.30pm), presents both Joel Masutha and Wedson Nyirenda an opportunity to redeem themselves and save their jobs amid shaky starts to the campaign.
Leopards are winless in their last five fixtures with three defeats in a row and two draws, while Baroka haven’t registered a victory in their past six outings, harvesting four draws and two losses.
So far, Lidoda Duvha have only won their opening match of the season against Polokwane City in August, while Bakgaga’s only win was in their second match against Cape Town City.
Heading into this bragging rights-encounter, both mentors are desperate for a win to avoid an early sacking in a league where there’s already one casualty in Dan Malesela who was fired by Chippa United after only three matches.
Nyirenda admits to anxiety about potential consequences of poor results when you are a coach. The Zambian tactician emphasises their eagerness to win this derby, feeling their bluntness in front of goal was their only problem.
“If results are not coming, you get concerned of what could happen to your job. I have to work hard to bring good results,” Nyirenda said.
“Naturally derbies have an enthusiasm because everyone wants to be the master of that territory. I feel we are playing very good football and the team is well-structured. We create chances but we are not putting them away.”
On the other hand, Masutha sounded confident about his chances. While insisting that their fortunes could turn with a blink of an eye, the Leopards coach made example about Kaizer Chiefs’ poor start to the season and how they’ve since turned it around.
“At this stage I am not concerned about losing my job. For me, it is still early. Look at Chiefs, they have since won three games in a raw and are third on the log. What also makes me not to be scared is that at Leopards everyone knows that this is a project, and we all believe we can make it work,” said Masutha.