Kaizer Chiefs coach Steve Komphela insists there is no panic about his side slipping eight points behind Mamelodi Sundowns at the halfway mark after Sunday's loss to Platinum Stars.

"It is more than recoverable. And why do I say that? We have the experience of having had a 12-point lead and we went on to lose the championship by two points [to Sundowns in 2014].

"But we are nowhere near that stage we are talking about. There is still a lot of ground to cover, however you cannot depend on the ground that needs to be covered, you've got to play for now," Komphela said of the 2-1 loss at the Cape Town Stadium to Stars, who scored twice in the final stages through Eleazar Rodgers.

But he did admit an eight-point deficit means more pressure, particularly with the derby against Orlando Pirates at Soccer City on the horizon on Saturday.

"We will feel the eight points and it will create more pressure, which is what football is all about. The excitement of being constantly under pressure. That's the beauty of the game," Komphela added.

Chiefs sit fourth on the log with 25 points after Sunday's loss, only their second of the season, with the previous one coming against Pirates at the end of October.

"We didn't see the loss against Stars coming. It was an entertaining game - both teams played good football - but we now need to start positive again after the loss. We didn't take our chances. We missed more than 10 goalscoring chances. That doesn't feel nice. We now have to work on the mindset of the players when they get into the final third."

Komphela rested Willard Katsande for Sunday's game due to the fact that the Zimbabwean was a yellow card away from suspension. The hard-tackling midfielder should return to bolster Amakhosi this weekend.

Also expected back in the setup is George Lebese, who has recovered from a groin strain after missing the past two matches.