Cape Town City coach Muhsin Ertugral will demand a bounce-back from his side following a daunting week.
City will play Premiership relegation strugglers Richards Bay at the Athlone Stadium tomorrow (7.30pm kick-off).
The Cape outfit are going in search of a third win in four games, after good back-to-back victories that have eased relegation worries and placed them in the conversation for a possible CAF Confederation Cup slot.
Next up for the Citizens:
🆚 Richards Bay
📆 17 January
🏆 #BetwayPrem
🏟️ Athlone Stadium
⌚️ 19H30
🎟️ FREE!#iamCityFC pic.twitter.com/Hi5VBpl8Lw
City are currently in seventh on the Premiership standings, six points off third-placed Sekhukhune United.
The Cityzens marked the arrival of the Turkish-born coach with two remarkable wins against two of his former clubs, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates.
Having disposed of the two Soweto giants, Ertugral then oversaw harsh scenes as his side lost 1-0 to a struggling Marumo Gallants outfit in Bloemfontein last Saturday, which was City’s third game in six days.
The demands of a tough couple of days was harshly criticised by Ertugral, who questioned the Premier Soccer League’s scheduling.
Ertugral insists the trip to Bloemfontein was a stretch too far for the team to perform in a third game in less than seven days.
“They played their hearts out, they did everything right – we played fair and square, played great games.
“And even in the second half, they pulled their socks up, went in and created again those elements necessary to at least get a draw,” he said after the game.
“And I’m not complaining about two games. I’m complaining about (Sunday and) Wednesday against two teams – I don’t see any team in this country playing after each other, in three days, against teams that really have a pedigree.
“It’s not child’s play here. We played a really difficult game, and then you need to come (and do it again) three days later – is there anyone playing like this?
“Chiefs is not playing, Pirates is not playing – hello, where are they?
“So, why must we come here to Bloemfontein also? It’s a little bit of sensitivity on the fixtures, sorry about that – maybe you will say I’m bitter.
“No, I’m not bitter. We need to protect these boys... they are human.”
City will have five days to prepare before they welcome Richards Bay to the Athlone Stadium tomorrow (7.30pm kick-off), and Ertugral will once again raise the expectations on his side as they look to cement their place in the top eight.
Previous meetings between these two teams have often swayed more to the side of City, having won four of the last five encounters against the Natal Rich Boyz.
The last time the KwaZulu-Natal side beat City was in 2022, when a Lyle Lakay own goal in stoppage time decided the encounter.
Richards Bay will hope for a similar kind of fortune when they make the trip to the Mother City, as they languish all the way in 15th spot on the league standings. | Independent Media Sport