Cape Town – If you’re still recovering from the drab, coma-inducing fixture between Liverpool and Manchester United on Monday night, and wondering how you’ll ever get back the lost 90 minutes of your life, Cape Town City coach Eric Tinkler had some insight into Jose Mourinho’s thinking.
And, while espousing on United manager Mourinho’s dour tactics, Tinkler was also able to reveal what was ailing his own City side.
“Mourinho was happy with the draw against Liverpool because he knows that leagues are won against teams like Stoke City and Middlesborough, those are the games that matter ... a point against the top teams, he’ll take it,” said Tinkler.
City come off an embarrassing 2-1 defeat to PSL rookies Baroka FC at the Cape Town Stadium at the weekend - and Tinkler’s conviction on how Mourinho went about the game against Liverpool is based on the City coach’s belief that “it’s the games against the lower teams in the league that ultimately determine where you finish”.
Tinkler had impressed on his men, before the Baroka game, that they shouldn’t under-rate their newby opponents, and treat the game as they would when coming up against one of the big teams in the PSL. His words weren’t heeded and City crashed to defeat.
City have an opportunity to put the defeat behind them when they host Bloemfontein Celtic in the opening round of the Telkom Knockout Cup competition at the Cape Town Stadium tonight (kick-off 7.30pm) - and Tinkler had no hesitation in pointing out that he would ring the changes.
“The thing about us is that we cannot just pitch up for the big games,” said Tinkler. “The players have to make sure that they have the same motivation for the smaller teams. They have to start with the same intensity, week in and week out! We didn’t do that against Baroka and, by the time we started playing, we were already 2-0 down.
“There’s a lot of disappointment after the loss to Baroka, from everyone at the club, including the players,” added Tinkler. “They know the performance wasn’t good enough.
“There will be changes. The bottom line is, if players are not performing, then they must step aside.
“It doesn’t mean that we don’t want to go far in this competition, we do - so this is an opportunity for other players to stake a claim.”
City striker Lehlohlonolo Majoro is ill and will miss out tonight. But Tinkler confirmed that Judas Moseamedi has been declared fit and will play up front against Celtic, while 30-year-old defender Robyn Johannes will also get a run.
The Star