BATTLE STATIONS
A story of two coaches in dire need of a trophy
TWO former Bafana Bafana teammates, Pitso Mosimane and Steve Komphela, both hungry and under pressure to appease expectant fans, pit their wits against each other in Wednesday’s Telkom Knockout final between Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs.
Both have been vocal on the lack of opportunities given to both South African, and perhaps to a greater extent, black South African, coaches at big clubs, so will be representing the interests of their peers at Moses Mabhida Stadium.
“Steve is trying to win his first cup,” Downs coach Mosimane said. “For me, Sundowns have never beaten Chiefs in a cup final; who would not like to have that?”
Mosimane can become the first South African to win all four trophies. Komphela is seeking his first.
“It’s a wonderful narrative, two South African coaches being there,” Komphela said. “It took a lot of work getting here. But only one can win.”
We asked the two tacticians to identify three key threats from the opposition. 1. Downs’s quality from midfield to attack You immediately think of their midfield — the Bongani Zungu factor, with Hlompo Kekana giving you brawn. Zungu, now a defensive midfielder, screens his centre backs well. And he can attack, play, press, score. So he’s not an old school DM.
Going forward, Khama Billiat and Cuthbert Malajila are quick. One of Downs’ key characteristics is that their wingers score. Keagan Dolly, if he comes back from SA U-23 duty in time. If not, then your Themba Zwanes. Their fullbacks overlap. Tebogo Langerman can play almost as a winger.
Their strength is upfront — central and wide. Whether it’s Katlego Mashego, Malajila or Billiat — Pitso plays whatever he wants. He can play speed or target man. But he plays more with strikers who are loose. You expect a lot of movement.
His famous saying is “breaking the line”. And when you manage the space countering that, they can also overload the midfield. 2. Mosimane’s analysis He’s a scholar of the game. He analyses to a level where he paralyses himself. It makes it hard to play Sundowns, because he really knows your team. But then, when you tweak something, if you fall outside that profile, he can get it wrong. That could be another way that you deal with some of HANDS ON DECK: Former Bafana Bafana teammates Pitso Mosimane, left, and Steve Komphela clash as coaches in the Telkom Knockout final the challenges.
If you go there with who you are, chances are he’s figured you out. So if you don’t want him to, you have to tweak something. Then he has to go and sort something out and maybe deal with it in the dressing room. That would be 45 minutes wasted. 3. Quality in defence
After Alje Schut’s release they had problems. They tried Ramahlwe Mphahlele, Thabo Nthethe, Soumahoro Bangaly, and you could see it was not working. Then he opted for the two — Wayne Arendse and Nthethe. Now they’re solid again.
But Sundowns attack becomes their defence. So have they been tested? Most teams sit back because of the fierce attack. It could be something to be looked at. 1. The midfield of Shabba and Ekstein
That’s the threat. Hendrick Ekstein and Shabba [Siphiwe Tshabalala] cannot be shut down easily. They move around — you can’t pin them down.
Shabba supplies throughpasses and scores. Ekstein is a sensation — he inspires the crowd and in that way revives the team. You can’t mark him because he’s forever moving. And he makes the passes.
In cup finals people can be nervous, they have butterflies, don’t want to make a mistake. So a player like Ekstein, who is not scared to try things, can be the heartbreaker. And Shabba has big-match temperament. That’s why Chiefs are known as cup kings — they’re used to cup finals. 2. Set pieces
If you name individuals it is Ekstein and Shabba, and Mathoho. If you name aspects it will be set pieces, and the combination there of Shabba, Mathoho and Ivan Bukenya.
Last year Chiefs were more lethal because “Masha” [Tefu Mashamaite] and Mathoho used to both score. They’ve been struggling with who is their left centre-back. Now they’re using Gordinho or Bukenya. So they haven’t found the same lethal combination at either end. Masha and Mathoho had height and good timing of the ball. But set pieces remain a big threat. 3. Chiefs’ compactness
You can’t go to two cup finals in three months and not be a good team. They have the least number of defeats this season. But Steve plays totally differently to [predecessor] Stuart Baxter. Baxter would win a lot of games 1-0. They used to sit back and go out on a break. Steve wants to play football.
So, given they still don’t lose easily, that shows this team has improved. They struggled in central defence with the loss of Masha, like we struggled with Schut. Bukenya has done well, and Gordinho is also good — he’s quicker, Ivan is more powerful.
But the difference between last year’s Sundowns and this year’s is we score freely, and goals come from all positions.
It’s a wonderful narrative, two South African coaches being there Ekstein is a sensation. You can’t mark him because he’s forever moving