Former PSL winger Mandla Masango has outlined how Sekhukhune United can pull off an upset against Orlando Pirates when the two sides clash in the Carling Knockout Cup quarter-finals on Saturday afternoon.
Babina Noko will travel to the Orlando Amstel Arena in Soweto to face the Buccaneers, with kick-off scheduled for 15:00 CAT.
The two Betway Premiership sides are no strangers to one another, having already met three times across all competitions this season. Pirates have dominated the fixture, emerging victorious in both legs of their MTN8 semi-final tie as well as their league encounter.
Abdeslam Ouaddou’s side come into this match aiming to protect their Carling Knockout title, after already surrendering their MTN8 crown following a 2-0 defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns last month.
However, speaking exclusively to FARPost, Masango highlighted that Sekhukhune have the quality to compete but need a drastic change in tactics to get past the Soweto giants.
MANDLA MASANGO ON WHAT SEKHUKHUNE UNITED NEED TO DO TO CLAIM FRUITFUL RESULTS AGAINST ORLANDO PIRATES
Masango believes Sekhukhune must ditch their defensive approach and take the game to Pirates if they are to cause an upset in the Carling Knockout Cup.
“You know, a team like Sekhukhune United has good players and a really good squad that can compete. But I’m not sure why they struggle so much in cup competitions,” Masango told FARPost.
“If they can attack more instead of defending, it could make a difference because a knockout tournament is different from a league match, where you need to park the bus. In a cup competition, it’s a one-off opportunity to get to the next round; defending doesn’t really help unless you are leading.”
Masango continued: “I feel that in order for Sekhukhune to beat Pirates, they really need to attack in numbers. They can respect them as a big club, but on the field, they shouldn’t respect them that much.
“As we know, Pirates is a well-oiled machine. You take out one player and put in another; you don’t really see the difference.”
Sekhukhune will be looking to heed Masango’s advice as they target a semi-final berth and keep their chances of winning this cup alive.
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