Gallants in search of confidence ahead of Downs clash

Marumo Gallants coach Dan Malesela hopes that his side can gather as much confidence as possible going into their next 2024/25 Betway Premiership assignment when they take on reigning league champions Mamelodi Sundowns at Loftus Versfeld on Tuesday evening. Kick-off is at 5:30pm (CAT, GMT+2), live on SuperSport.

CURRENT FORM

Downs head into their next league game high in confidence, following an 8-0 aggregate win against Mbabane Swallows in the Caf Champions League second preliminary round.

Other than their commitments in Africa, the Brazilians commenced their 24/25 Betway Premiership season with a 2-0 win against SuperSport United in the Tshwane Derby on the 17th of September.

While Downs have been showing positive form, Gallants opened their league season with back-to-back defeats against Kaizer Chiefs and Golden Arrows.

WHAT WAS SAID

Reflecting on the next couple of matches, Sundowns coach Manqoba Mngqithi mentioned that his side’s free-scoring form will bring confidence and competition to the team.

“It’s always nice to win and to score many goals because it brings confidence in the group but the most important thing for me is that it brings a lot of competition in the team,” Mngqithi said.

“Now that this team that played today [Saturday] scored four, it’s a wait-and-see what happens in our game against Marumo and we also have a big one after that which is Kaizer Chiefs.

"So, those matches now present an opportunity for me to see how far we can go in the next matches before the Fifa break.”

Gallants coach Dan Malesela hopes that victory against the Brazilians will restore his side’s confidence and that recent results paint a different picture in comparison to their brand of football this season.  

“It will probably give them confidence (facing Sundowns). We need to start winning somewhere... it doesn’t matter against who,” Malesela said.  

“This is professional football: you cannot play for fun. My only problem with the players at the moment is the intent. The results are not a representation of how we’ve been playing.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Mamelodi Sundowns: Themba Zwane – the Downs midfielder is showing no signs of slowing down and started the 2024/25 campaign on a positive note. Whether it be as a starter or from the bench, Zwane is expected to pull strings in the middle of the park this weekend.

Marumo Gallants: Siyabulela Shai – Now at the age of 31, Shai is currently one of Gallant’s most experienced players this season. While goals have been hard to come by for Gallants lately, Shai now has the opportunity to kick-start his side’s season with a top display against the reigning league champions.

HEAD-TO-HEAD:

Last four league games:

2021/22 Marumo Gallants 0-4 Mamelodi Sundowns

2021/22 Mamelodi Sundowns 1-1 Marumo Gallants

2022/23 Mamelodi Sundowns 1-0 Marumo Gallants

2022/23 Marumo Gallants 0-2 Mamelodi Sundowns