SuperSport United seek league revival against resurgent Chiefs
SuperSport United need to feed off their Nedbank Cup success when they come up against an improving Kaizer Chiefs side in the Betway Premiership on Tuesday at the FNB Stadium (7.30pm kick-off).
Matsatsantsa a Pitori will make the short trip to meet their cross-town rivals with their league record in need of serious improvement following a couple of poor results, both at home and away.
The former champions find themselves in 12th position with only four wins from their 17 matches, and they need to hit some good form as only a handful of games are left in the season; their current form could lead them straight into a battle to stay afloat.
The Pretoria-based outfit survived a late scare in their Nedbank Cup last-16 fixture against Motsepe Foundation Championship side Cape Town Spurs, who went pound for pound with them through regulation time and a large part of extra time.
To their credit, Matsatsantsa clawed their way back into the encounter against a side in the lower division, but one that was just recently relegated from the top flight last season and still possesses a lot of quality. They came from a goal behind to secure a 2-1 win through a Lebohang Maboe thunderbolt, with penalties looming and only one minute of extra time remaining.
Heading into their crunch match, Gavin Hunt will hope that their hard-fought win could turn the tables for his side as they go into the clash having only managed to claim a single point from their last five matches, with their last win coming last year against another troubled side, Magesi FC, following a 1-0 scoreline in December.
The difference between Chiefs and Matsatsantsa has been their ability to pick up wins through their inconsistent spells, while Hunt and his troops have suffered too many defeats without being able to convert some of their draws into wins.
The two giants will be meeting for the second time this season, and of the four wins that the Pretoria-based outfit have secured this season, one was in the clash against the Glamour Boys last year, where they walked away with a 1-0 victory at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in October.
They will, however, meet a different Amakhosi side that is flying high in confidence following their Nedbank Cup success that saw them deliver what was one of their most convincing performances of the season with a 3-0 win against Chippa United last Saturday, backing up their 1-0 win against Stellenbosch FC in their last league outing.
Only eight points separate fourth-placed TS Galaxy and SuperSport, and as they currently lie in 12th position, the key services of Maboe, on loan from Sundowns, and Christian Saile from Chiefs, with striker Samir Nurkovic also easing back into competitive football, could prove vital for the rest of their campaign.