Mamelodi Sundowns host Maritzburg United at the Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday evening in the Absa Premiership. The game is set to kick off at 20:15.
Pitso Mosimane’s side have made strides up the table in recent weeks having registered three wins and a draw since their disastrous loss to Golden Arrows in early September. Their goalless draw with a struggling Polokwane City on Wednesday may have put a halt to proceedings and Mosimane will hope to kick on again with another three points on the weekend.
The Brazilians currently sit on fifth spot with 14 points from eight games. With four wins to their name they are now well and truly on the way to overcoming their poor start.
Maritzburg United find themselves in the unenviable position of being stone last on the log. They boast a horrible record of one point from seven games. Clive Barker has been in the job for a few weeks now but despite a 2-1 win over Jomo Cosmos in the Telkom Knockout he has done little to inspire hope in the Team of Choice players and fans.
Most recently Maritzburg have lost 2-0 to Orlando Pirates in the TKO last weekend and by the same scoreline to Chippa United in the league on Wednesday. With this type of form it is really difficult to see them coming away with any points from the Lucas Moripe Stadium.
Sundowns have a number of players that are just starting to hit top form. Early on in the season it was only Keagan Dolly and Teko Modise that stood out but now players like Mogakolodi Ngele and Khama Billiat have started to come into their own. If none of these creative players are able to break down Barker’s outfit on the day then Mosimane can always turn to Anthony Laffor. The Liberian attacker has come off the bench to score on a number of occasions this season already.
Going forward United will have to rely on the creativity of Kurt Lentjies and the tricky Khumbulani Banda if they are to get anything from this game.
In the last five games between the two Maritzburg haven’t managed to record a win. Three of those games have, however, been drawn, with Downs winning the other two.
