Cape Town – Winning football games is about more than talent and skill, it’s also, very importantly, about desire and character.
Ajax Cape Town coach Stanley Menzo has this attitude firmly entrenched in his coaching philosophy. And it’s precisely why he was livid after his side got thrashed 5-0 by Wits on Tuesday.
Needless to say, he’s demanding a positive reaction when Ajax host neighbours Cape Town City in the Mother City derby at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday night (8.15pm kickoff).
“Last year, when we performed so well, the players were playing with fire and heart,” said the former Ajax Amsterdam and Netherlands goalkeeper. “Against Wits on Tuesday, there was none of that spirit… I’m hoping that the players can give us that fire on Saturday.”
Menzo, in fact, elaborated even more on the significance of these important traits required to succeed in football.
“Ajax aren’t the richest club and we have to work with the academy to ensure that we have players to sustain the team,” said the coach. “But if there’s one thing I’d like to do during my tenure as coach, then it’s to change the mentality at the club. I want to elevate the team to be more than just a mid-table side – and you do that through mentality and character. You don’t always need a squad of good players, because with the right attitude, the right mentality, you can get them to perform above themselves and get them (to) compete with the best.”
Menzo is targeting the crunch fixture against City to galvanise the squad. The Mother City derby comes at just the right time for Ajax. With morale low after the drubbing by Wits, the Urban Warriors need a response – and what better stage than the Cape derby to bounce back. Menzo believes the derby is the perfect game for the players to re-discover the desire and determination that saw them make rapid improvement towards the end of last year.
“The possibility to lose against Wits on Tuesday was high,” said Menzo. “They have a very good squad, but it was how we lost that was disappointing. But there will be moments like that during a season and, hopefully, that is the last one for us. We had lots of ball possession against Wits, but ball possession means nothing if you don’t create chances and score goals. We started the game well, but then made a silly mistake and we conceded a goal. Sometimes football is like that, you make one error and the confidence goes… and I think that was the case against Wits.”
The Ajax coach, though, will be impressing on his players that they cannot afford to make such schoolboy mistakes against City. “The derby is a nice moment for us,” he said. “They say the log doesn’t lie, and City are currently in third position, so they are the favourites. But this is a special game for the people of the city and it’s important that we don’t look at the log. It won’t be easy, City are a team who play from the first minute to the last and they have a captain (Lebogang Manyama) who is carrying the team.
“We will try to get the points as we always do, but the position we are in is still not good. We have to start getting out of where we are…”
Squad news is that defender Roscoe Pietersen is nursing an ankle injury, new Zambian signing Aubrey Funga is still awaiting his work permit, while there is again concern around striker Prince Nxumalo.
Nxumalo, whose problems with epilepsy are well-documented, had a recurrence of the issue the evening before the Wits game. He then sat out because Menzo wasn’t prepared to risk playing the forward. Nxumalo subsequently stayed behind in Johannesburg and only arrived back in the Mother City yesterday. The player’s fitness and health will be monitored and assessed before Menzo makes a decision on whether he will be available for City or not.
All in all, though, there’s no room for error for Ajax.
“It’s simple, we have to perform,” said Menzo. “In football, there’s always pressure. As sportsmen, players have to be able to perform under pressure. We know what we have to do… we have to do it for the people, we have to do it because it’s a derby.”
PSL Fixtures
Saturday:
Mamelodi Sundowns v Orlando Pirates; Golden Arrows v Bloemfontein Celtic; Ajax Cape Town v Cape Town City (Cape Town Stadium, 8.15pm); Maritzburg Utd v Kaizer Chiefs
Sunday:
Highlands Park v Polokwane City