City eye back-to-back wins against Soweto giants

After adding to Kaizer Chiefs’ woes in the Betway Premiership last week, Cape Town City will now look to get one over Orlando Pirates in their next league assignment at the DHL Stadium on Wednesday evening.

Kick-off is at 7:30pm (CAT, GMT+2)

CURRENT FORM

Now under the tutelage of Mushin Ertugral on a short-term basis, City returned to winning ways recently following a 1-0 victory over Kaizer Chiefs at the popular DHL Stadium on the 5th of January.

Prior to their result against the Glamour Boys, City suffered three defeats in their last five Betway Premiership games.

As it stands, the Mother City outfit sit in 11th position on the table, after accumulating just four wins in 11 league ties played so far.

Pirates on the other hand, are hoping to challenge for the 2024/25 Betway Premiership title and could go above first placed Mamelodi Sundowns with a win in Cape Town.

The Soweto giants trail Sundowns by three points in second position and share an identical goal difference record with the Tshwane side after 10 matches.

Orlando Pirates are currently on a two-match winning streak, which includes a mammoth 8-1 victory against Marumo Gallants on the 24th of December 2024.

The Buccaneers have lost just one game this season, which came in the form of a 1-0 defeat against Stellenbosch at the Orlando Stadium on the 1st of December 2024.

WHAT WAS SAID

Reflecting on City’s recent win against Chiefs, Ertugral believes that a collective effort is needed from the club to gain success toward the end of the campaign.

“Collectiveness sometimes is missing in South African football,” Ertugral said.

“The organisation has to be in synergy, and that’s what we worked on in the last three days, more than the inner zone patterns.

“The collectiveness when we lose the ball was important for us.”

Having bagged a 3-0 win against Stade Abidjan in the CAF Champions League this past weekend, Pirates coach Jose Riveiro lauded his side’s performance amid tense conditions.

“However, it was an incredible performance from the guys from the first minute till the last whistle,” Riveiro said.

“I think the attitude was that of a team that wanted to do something special, keep growing, and achieve things together.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Cape Town City: Darwin Gonzalez – Despite City enduring a largely indifferent campaign, Gonzalez remains an important player for the Citizens. After scoring the winner against Amakhosi on Sunday, the Venezuelan attacker will no doubt hope to put Pirates to the sword on Wednesday night.

Orlando Pirates: Relebohile Mofokeng – As one of South Africa’s brightest prospects currently, Mofokeng has often left fans on the edge of their seats this season. Known for being a big game player, the 20-year-old could well decide matters against City this week.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

Last five league results

2021/22 Orlando Pirates 0-0 Cape Town City

2022/23 Cape Town City 2-1 Orlando Pirates

2022/23 Orlando Pirates 2-1 Cape Town City

2023/24 Orlando Pirates 2-0 Cape Town City

2023/24 Cape Town City 0-1 Orlando Pirates