Mthombeni Anticipates Tough AmaZulu Test In Nedbank Cup

Casric Stars coach Bucks Mthombeni says his side expects a difficult challenge against AmaZulu when the teams meet in the Nedbank Cup quarterfinal at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday afternoon, but believes his players are ready to compete and possibly produce another upset.

The Motsepe Foundation Championship side has already made headlines in this year’s competition after eliminating Betway Premiership giants Orlando Pirates in the Round of 16 last month.

That result demonstrated Casric Stars’ ability to compete with top-flight opposition and has raised hopes that they could once again surprise a Premiership team.

However, Mthombeni insists his team is fully aware that facing AmaZulu away from home will be a significant challenge. The 45-year-old mentor said playing in Durban against a well-organised side will require discipline, patience, and strict adherence to their tactical plan.

“As now it is the quarterfinal, what I can say is that it is not going to be an easy game at all, especially since we are playing an away game,” Mthombeni said.

“It will be a tough game, but we are ready to go there to play and stick to our plan. Arthur (Zwane) is a good coach. I think they play good football, and they defend well because if you check their last three games, they have conceded only two goals.

“They are attacking very well, especially in the second half, but they are struggling to score goals. But I think it is very difficult to play against them in Durban because they use their full-backs more, like (Nkosikhona) Radebe and their captain (Riaan Hanamub).

“What we need to do is to go there and defend well, and also try to score early. They are very deadly when it comes to the set pieces because their captain, I think, is very dangerous on the dead ball.

“But I think they look more compact, and they are ready for this game, but we are also ready.”

Having already knocked out Pirates earlier in the tournament, Casric will travel to Durban believing that another upset could be possible, although Mthombeni acknowledged that AmaZulu coach Zwane will be eager to improve his team’s recent league results.

“Arthur, in the last three league games, they got only one point, and I think he will want to turn around the corner,” Mthombeni added.

“But I think the Nedbank is for all people, and there is no one who undermines another person, and we saw this in 2019 when a team (TS Galaxy) from NFD (Motsepe Foundation Championship) won this tournament.

“There are no small teams in this tournament, and what is nice is that when we are playing away from home, we make sure that we get something. I think the boys don’t need more motivation when we play against the teams from the Betway Prem, they are always ready and want to show themselves what they have.”

With confidence boosted by their victory over Pirates, Stars will hope to rise to the occasion once again and prove that another surprise result is possible when they face AmaZulu in Durban.