Advertisement

Mngqithi wants more creativity against Royal AM

football22 October 2024 12:10| © Backpage TXT
Share
article image
Manqoba Mngqithi © Gallo Images

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Manqoba Mngqithi believes it is more important to be creating chances than scoring plenty of goals as he prepares for the visit of Royal AM to the Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Wednesday, October 23.

Kick-off is at 7.30pm CAT (SA, GMT+2)

Current form:

Bafana ba Style put five past Golden Arrows in the Carling Knockout on Saturday to advance to the quarterfinals and extend their winning streak to six matches in all competitions.

The Brazilians had struggled to find the back of the net initially and they bowed out of the MTN8 after failing to score in both legs of the semifinals against Stellenbosch.

However, the goals are now flowing as Sundowns have scored 21 times in their last six outings and Mngqithi is keen to build on that in order to put them in a good frame of mind for the CAF Champions League.

Mngqithi's side host Thwihli Thwahla in the Betway Premiership looking to maintain their 100 per cent record which sees them occupying top spot ahead of Orlando Pirates on goal difference.

Royal AM will be focusing solely on the league for the rest of the year after they were dumped out of the Carling Knockout at the first hurdle following a 3-0 defeat to Cape Town City on Saturday.

The KZN outfit are one of just four teams to remain unbeaten in 2024-25, but they're way down in ninth place after drawing all four of their games.

John Maduka's side have kept three successive clean sheets since playing out to a 1-1 draw with the Citizens on the opening weekend of the new campaign.

 

 

What was said:

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Manqoba Mngqithi

"The five goals, for me it doesn't mean anything at the moment. I just think we are trying to work very hard on improving our chance creation.

"If you look at the games that we played against Polokwane City here and look at the number of chances we created, it is the same as today (against Arrows) and it was difficult for us to get a goal.

"I have always been optimistic that the team will come right, the team is stronger than last season. I've always believed that we are on the right track and the approach I chose for the team is the right one because we have a bigger responsibility in the Champions League where we are also expected to create a little bit more and hopefully, we will build from this."

Royal AM head coach John Maduka

"It's a difficult game playing away from home. We are happy that we rested most of our players [against Cape Town City], and I think they will bring fresh legs [at Sundowns].

"Sundowns are a team that wants to win the league again, so it is not going to be easy. We need to be ready. We are looking forward to it; it is a league game and it's not like a cup match. We have to be smart going there."

Players to watch:

Mamelodi Sundowns - Lucas Ribeiro failed to get on the scoresheet in the Carling Knockout rout of Arrows, but he did set up Thapelo Morena for the opener. The Brazilian continued his fine start to the season with a goal and an assist in the 2-1 win over Kaizer Chiefs on September 29 as he scored for the third league game in succession, further proving his value to the team.

Royal AM - Motebang Sera had Thwihli Thwahla's best chances in the 0-0 stalemate with Magesi last time out and he looked dangerous throughout, put the ball in the back of the net on 27 minutes, glancing a header wide of the left post on the stroke of halftime after seeing his goal in the 37th minutes ruled out for offside. The Lesotho international did manage to hit the target in the final minute, but his header went straight to the goalkeeper.

Head-to-Head: (Previous Five League Meetings)

Matches - 5

Sundowns wins - 5

Royal AM wins - 0

Draws - 0

Advertisement