City need to end losing run

City need to end losing run

Three straight losses are hardly what was expected from Cape Town City this season but they have a good chance to steady the ship at home to Maritzburg tonight when many TAB soccer customers will bank on them on to win

By Nick Said

Cape Town City’s weekend defeat at AmaZulu was the first time in the club’s history that they have lost four games in a row and puts them in serious peril for tonight’s clash at home to Maritzburg United, a game they ordinarily would be expected to win.

City have been beaten in their opening three games of this campaign and to that you can add a 1-0 loss at Stellenbosch FC in the final game of last season.

This looked set to be a big season for them after a second-place finish in the PSL in 2021-22 qualified them for a place in African Champions League. But it has begun as a bit of a nightmare with the side defensively unstable and seemingly always on the back foot in what is obviously a source of huge frustration for coach Eric Tinkler.

They have conceded seven goals in their first three games and at least two in every match, which is unusual for Tinkler sides that are typically compact at the back and difficult to penetrate.

There should also be question marks over goalkeeper Hugo Marques, who has not covered himself in glory and has made several rash decisions this season. How long Tinkler’s patience with him will last remains to be seen, especially with former Bafana Bafana gloveman Darren Keet waiting in the wings and an excellent alternative.

City are the only side yet to collect a point in the league so far, but what will help is that they now have four home games in a row to build some momentum, three in the league and an MTN8 quarter-final.

Tonight’s game against Maritzburg is now a must-win ahead of a Cape Town derby against Stellenbosch on Saturday and then hosting Kaizer Chiefs on 23 August.

City play tonight to make space on the calendar for their first Champions League game next month - and it’s the same for Royal AM, who are competing in the African Confederation Cup.

Their home match against Orlando Pirates has been brought forward to tomorrow night and promises to be an intriguing encounter as both play for a fourth time in just 10 days.

So the fitness of both sides and how well they deal with potential fatigue will play a big role in the outcome. Both are also under some pressure after weekend losses, especially Pirates’ new Spanish boss Jose Riveiro, whose side were wasteful against Chippa United on Sunday and then paid the price when they conceded late in the game.

All the midweek PSL clashes are included in TAB’s range of soccer pools and there are some great PSL and English Premiership clashes on the menu for the weekend, when TAB will add R600,000 to selected Soccer 4, 6 and 10 pools. The details are in this edition of TAB Sports Express.