East London – Chippa United coach Dan Malesela says his soldiers will need to show character when they meet Orlando Pirates in a DStv Premiership match on Saturday.
Kickoff is scheduled to start at 18:00 at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
Chilli Boys are under pressure to get good a result against a tough Pirates after playing four league games without a win.
On Wednesday this week, Chippa shared a point with Cape Town City after playing an exciting goalless draw at Sisa Dukashe Stadium in Mdantsane. “It’s going to be difficult to play Pirates,” said Malesela after the game.
“They have a huge squad and can change at any given time. But we need just the character we have shown when we are on the road. We have to build on that. We need to continue building and getting better results,” said the coach.
In 12th position, Chilli Boys are only four points ahead o the relegation zone, and a win against Pirates could take them up to tenth, depending on other results.
But the problem is that Chippa have won only once at home this season and the record against Pirates is very poor. So, it is vitally important for Chippa United men to start collecting maximum points, especially at home, to avoid playing under immense pressure as they did last season.
The Soweto giants are going to Gqeberha oozing confidence following an important victory against Bloemfontein Celtic on Tuesday this week, leaving them undefeated in the last seven games in all competitions.
It is a win that placed Pirates in third place, one point behind SuperSport United – but Josef Zinnbauer showed no interest in talking about challenging Mamelodi Sundowns.
“We do not have enough points, so we can't talk about the top of the log. It’s not possible. We have to see what happens in the future. When we come closer, we can talk about the title,” said Zinnbauer.
IOL Sport