Cape Town City coach Diogo Peral stressed the urgent need for wins as the season draws to a close, warning that failure to do so will lead to trouble for the club.

The Cape Town side currently sits third from the bottom of the league table with 24 points after 26 matches, having secured only six victories this season. They hold a slender one-point lead over 15th-placed SuperSport United, who have three games in hand.

Interestingly, both City and SuperSport have undergone coaching changes this season. Eric Tinkler was dismissed in December and replaced by Muhsin Ertugral, who was also fired in March following a poor run of results. The club then appointed Peral to take charge until the end of the season, with former Orlando Pirates coach Roger de Sa as his assistant.

However, this change in the technical team has yet to yield positive results, as the club suffered a 1-0 defeat to Richards Bay at King Zwelithini Stadium on Friday. The match, City’s 14th loss of the season, was attended by club chairman John Comitis and his sons in Durban.

When asked if SuperSport’s own struggles provided any comfort, Peral dismissed the notion, emphasizing that his team urgently needs to secure victories.

“I don’t know if we get to the end of the season without a win and we get out of trouble; we need to get a win somewhere,” said Peral. “A win, a point – we need to get a win to get out of the situation we are in. For sure, the guys at the bottom are all performing, so they are going to get their wins. We need to come up with the results somewhere; otherwise, we might be in trouble come the end of the season.”

The loss to Richards Bay means that City are now winless in their last 13 matches across all competitions. Notably, their last victory was against the same Richards Bay in Cape Town back in January.

Furthermore, away matches have proven particularly challenging for the club. They have only managed one away win this season, against Chippa United in December.

Adding to their woes, City were very active in the transfer market before the season began, signing a significant number of players, including Haashim Domingo, Fortune Makaringe, Carlinhos (who sadly suffered an ACL injury), Kamohelo Mokotjo, Amadou Soukouna, Kayden Francis, Elson Sithole, Lefa Aphane, Sibusiso Ziba, Ntsikelelo Ngqonga, Idumba Fasika (returned on loan), and Prins Tjiueza.

The club also promoted Xhosa Manyana, Emile Witbooi, Gabriel Amato, and Siphamandla Dondolo from within their ranks.

However, according to Peral’s assessment, none of these new additions have made a significant impact on the team. He hinted that some of these players might be released at the end of the season.

“There are several things for sure [that have led us to play this badly], and we will look at that come the end of the season,” he stated. “At the moment, everyone in the group we are going to need.”