Cape Town City coach, Eric Tinkler has shared his analysis of upcoming MTN8 semi-final opponents, Orlando Pirates while celebrating a hard-fought victory over Sekhukhune. 

In their 2024/25 Premier Soccer League (PSL) opener, the Citizens edged Sekhukhune 1-0 to book themselves a spot in the MTN8 semi-final on Saturday. 

The City gaffer commended his boys for clinching the hard-fought victory and emphasized the importance of opening the season with a win. 

“I think winning this game is important because it builds confidence in what we have been doing over the past six weeks,” said Tinkler.

Conducted immediately after Sundowns knocked Polokwane City out, the MTN8 semi-final draw saw City get drawn to face Orlando Pirates in the two-legged semis. 

Despite sharing his sentiments before the draw, Tinkler seemed to have already assessed his then-potential opponents in Pirates. 

The former Bafana Bafana defender acknowledged the great deal of talent that Pirates possess in their squad, disclosing having monitored their pre-season friendlies in Spain. 

“Pirates, we watched a lot of them while they were away in Spain, and they have a lot of quality at their disposal, huge team,” asserted Tinkler.

“But I do feel against SuperSport, I thought that was a very open game and in the beginning,  SuperSport could have taken the lead but didn’t,” claimed the former SuperSport coach. 

The last MTN8 meeting between the two sides saw Terrence Dzvukamanja goal guide Pirates to a 1-0 victory, dumping City out of the MTN8 quarter-final in 2020, before winning the tournament.