Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates are hopeful that their midweek league victories will revive their challenge for the DSTV Premiership league title this season.
The two Soweto giants will clash at the FNB stadium in Soweto on Saturday, November 11, 2023, to another expected sold-out capacity crowd. Both teams have not been having a good run in recent matches, but they will be looking to build on their midweek wins and get their title campaigns back on track.
Pirates beat Sekhukhune United to snap their four-match winless streak. They are currently in 10th position on the log with 12 points.
Pirates coach Jose Riviero says, “We play with the intention to finish the game and win the results. Last time against Sekhukhune, we deserved to win. In the other games, we didn’t win even though we got bad results, a couple of draws, and one defeat – but we didn’t change the way we play.”
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Amakhosi were on a three-match losing streak, including being booted out of the Carling Knockout Cup. But on Wednesday, they stepped up to beat Cape Town Spurs. The team’s previous poor results also prompted a coaching change, with interim coach Cavin Johnson replacing Molefi Ntseki.
Johnson is adamant about their efforts to win the league title. “It’s still early days in the league, but it gives you hope that you can build a team because we don’t have bad players. We need to be consistent in the league. We need to play more the Kaizer Chiefs way,” Johnson says.
Chiefs go into the match with a psychological advantage. They have never lost in the last five league matches against their bitter arch-rivals.
The aim is maximum points for Johnson. “It is a huge importance for us,” Johnson says. “It’s our home game, and we need to take all the points. We will push as hard as we get to get better in the league and play to win the three points,” he adds.
Saturday’s match will be the 105th clash between the two Soweto giants with Amakhosi winning 45 times, drawing 36 times and losing 23 times.
