– Cape Town On Monday evening, the MTN8 semi-finals were drawn, and this year’s tournament is expected to attract more attention due to the participation of three Gauteng giants: Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs, and Mamelodi Sundowns.
This year, the semi-finals will likewise be played over two legs, with the first match beginning on October 1.
Pirates and Sundowns will face off against one another, while Kaizer Chiefs will take on AmaZulu. As we have seen in the past, anything can happen in tournament football, and all four clubs in the Wafa Wafa competition will be aiming for the championship. Pirates, Sundowns, and Chiefs have all won the event in recent years, but Usuthu, led by Brandon Truter, hopes to snap a three-decade trophy drought.
The coach of the Pirates, Jose Riveiro, is cognizant of the difficulty his team will confront against the defending champions, Sundowns.
“It will be a time of physical fitness and self-assurance. The contests will be captivating and filled with emotion. There will be two teams with quality players. The outcome will be determined in the second game, thus my prediction is a tie. Hopefully, there will be several objectives and feelings. “We are motivated to win the competition,” the Spaniard stated.
AmaZulu will face the Chiefs on the heels of an excellent victory over Cape Town City. Even though City dominated possession, Usuthu performed admirably against the Citizens by mentally debilitating their opponents. Usuthu will attempt to do the same against Chiefs, who have demonstrated numerous weaknesses thus far under new coach Arthur Zwane.
The AmaZulu coach, Truter, is sure that his team would not be intimidated by the more decorated Chiefs.
“Being on the road for the first leg will give us an advantage. If we can complete the task quickly away from home, we will be in a favorable position before the second leg. We have confidence against any opponent. The guys have been performing admirably, and the squad is always advancing. Always, there is opportunity for improvement. I anticipate our performance against Chiefs to be of the highest caliber,” stated Truter.
Chiefs are off to a dismal start under Zwane, having won only two of their first five league games. This Saturday, before to the MTN8 semifinal, Chiefs will host Usuthu in a league match. Zwane believes that the winner of the league game will have an advantage in the cup match.
“It will not be simple to defeat AmaZulu. They have been successful in league play. They’ve created a strong team with a strong technical staff. It will be challenging and require two legs. These games will be knockout games, hence the strategy for home and away games will vary. “We look forward to our first league match against them,” stated Zwane.
@EshlinV