Tinkler closing in on his African dream
CAPE Town City head coach Eric Tinkler is two matches away from etching himself in the club’s history books by grabbing City’s best ever finish in the league and qualifying for the CAF Champions League.
The Citizens are the most in-form team in the league and are currently on a remarkable 12 match unbeaten run and are the only team to not taste defeat in 2022.
The 51-year old mentor’s pedigree in cup competitions is undisputed after winning the Telkom Knockout in his first stint with City in 2017 before going on to lift the MTN8 the following year in the SuperSport United dugout.
However, his ability to manage a team into the kind consistency required to contend in the league has always been in question with his sides’ inability to keep cleansheets.
The Cape Town-based side are leading the race for second place with 48 points after 28 matches, closely followed by Royal AM, who are three points adrift and have a game in hand.
Tinkler and his City side seem to have found the right formula at the right time, too, as teams around them seem to be feeling the pressure of contending for continental spots.
The Roodepoort-born coach has brought a high energy, full throttle and aggressively attacking style of play to City that can be traced back to his time with Orlando Pirates in 2013.
City have averaged an impressive two points per match in the second half of the season, collecting 30 points in their last 15 matches played.
In that same period they’ve only conceded eight goals, largely due to the form of Hugo Marques, who is a Goalkeeper of the Season contender.