Malesela Worried By Gallants’ Form In Survival Battle
A worried Marumo Gallants coach, Dan Malesela, says his team cannot afford to drop six points in the two matches in a row in Durban, as it would severely hamper their fight for survival in the league.
Gallants, currently 13th in the Betway Premiership table, will travel to the Moses Mabhida Stadium to face AmaZulu on Friday (19:30). This match comes just three days after a painful 2-1 loss to second-from-bottom Richards Bay at the King Zwelithini Stadium on Tuesday.
Gallants had taken the lead through Sekela Sithole but then conceded two late goals in quick succession to Justice Figareido and DStv Diski Challenge youngster Ntlomelo Bomelo, losing the game in referee’s optional time.
Adding to their woes, Gallants lost the match despite Richards Bay playing with 10 men after Yanela Mbuthuma’s red card in the 59th minute.
“It becomes even bigger because now – how do you come from this, and within two days you must motivate, and who is motivated now?” a concerned Malesela asked.
“AmaZulu should be (buoyed after coming from behind twice to draw 2-2 with Kaizer Chiefs, also on Tuesday, and having seen us lose). We have this situation where AmaZulu would say, ‘Oh, okay, they were beaten by 10 men,’ their confidence goes up. We need to be motivated twice, and that is the name of this game. We have to find solutions; we have to find ways of coming back.”
Another cause for concern is Gallants’ leaky defense. They have conceded more goals than any other team in the league – 25.
“The motivation should be the game itself; we need to get points,” continued Malesela, whose team has only won four matches this season.
“We can’t come here (to Durban) and lose six points. It doesn’t matter if we are playing away or wherever. Now we are in a position where one point is not good enough. We need to get three points. We had a chance to go above SuperSport United (if we had won the Richards Bay game), so why not keep the discipline? Why do we keep making fouls, all of that? The motivation factor: we need to get three points; we need to redeem our image.”
Gallants and AmaZulu will meet again in the Nedbank Cup round of 16 at the Dr. Molemela Stadium next weekend.
