Aubaas Sends Stern Warning To Polokwane

Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Bathusi Aubaas has sent a stern warning to Polokwane City ahead of their second-leg clash of the Betway Premiership at Loftus Stadium on Wednesday (19:30).
The defending champions were stunned with a 1-0 loss to Rise and Shine last month, which ended their unbeaten start to the 2024/25 campaign – leaving log leaders Orlando Pirates as the only team yet to lose a match in the league. The Limpopo-based outfit has proved to be a bogey team for Sundowns this term, with the Chloorkop side needing an extra-time own goal to overcome Phuti Mohafe’s troops in the quarterfinals of the MTN8.
Now, with Manqoba Mngqithi’s side off the back of a convincing 4-0 drubbing of Nasreddine Nabi’s Kaizer Chiefs in the Carling Knockout Cup quarterfinals on Saturday, the Bafana International has urged his teammates to continue where they left off.
“I think we played very well against Kaizer Chiefs and applied ourselves the way the coach wanted us to play. Going to face Polokwane this Wednesday we have to apply again whatever the coach wants; we have to focus on ourselves, ” said Aubaas.
However, the Downs anchor man has acknowledged that they didn’t have a good day at the office against Mohafe’s men in Limpopo but insists they are ready to redeem themselves from the embarrassment of failing to register a single shot on target.
“We didn’t play well against them in Polokwane, we didn’t even have a shot on target, and we are ready [to avenge ourselves], I think we are going to do better this time around, everyone in the team is ready to face Polokwane, ” the former TS Galaxy man asserted.
Aubaas went on to pinpoint the threat posed by the 2022/23 Motsepe Foundation Championship winners, noting that the Tshwane giants have to be wary of the team’s long ball style of play and convert their chances to win the encounter.
“I think they always put the ball into the box whenever they play against any team in this league, and I think they have a physical striker (Hlayisa Chauke), he always bulldozes the defenders, but I think we will deal with that, ” he said.
“We also have to deal with the second balls because they are a team that plays with long balls and crosses, so we have to take our opportunities to win the match.”
Mnqithi’s charges bounced back to winning ways in the league with a resounding 3-0 victory over Cape Town City over a week ago, while City made it back-to-back wins with a 1-0 away win at Royal AM.