Kaizer Chiefs, buoyed by their impressive performance against AS Simba in the CAF Confederation Cup on Sunday, will be hoping that their strikers do not leave their scoring boots at home, building on their heartwarming performance against the Democratic Republic of the Congo outfit.
Chiefs advanced to the group stage of the tournament after nailing Simba 3-1 in the second leg in Soweto. The first leg ended goalless in Lubumbashi two weeks ago.
On Friday night, Chiefs will face Durban City at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in a Betway Premiership encounter.
Amakhosi will need to show some consistency and also reward their fans with an enterprising brand of football and some goals. The match kicks off at 7.30pm.
Mdu Shabalala, Amakhosi’s dribbling wizard, highlighted that the team’s victory in the CAF assignment has instilled much-needed confidence and drive before the match against their Durban opponents.
“It was a huge confidence booster for us to score three goals, and we will take that into the match against Durban City,” Shabalala was quoted by the Chiefs website.
Chance to revive league prospects
Amakhosi view this fixture as a chance to revive their league prospects after failing to gain maximum points in any of their last three matches, although Shabalala feels it will only take minor adjustments to turn their fortunes around.
“For us, it is critical to get a good result in this match. We have been playing well but haven’t converted our chances as we would want to.
“This is a good opportunity for us to get back on track for a good season in the league. We just need to stick with what we are doing and turn the chances we create into goals,” Shabalala said.
After nine rounds of the Betway Premiership, the fourth-placed Chiefs sit one place and one point ahead of their opponents, and they will aim to close the gap by securing all three points on Friday.
“We will give them the respect they deserve for having a successful start to the season. But our main focus is on ourselves and what we want to achieve, which is to make sure to turn our excellent performances into results.”
