Kaizer Chiefs travel to Madagascar for Saturday’s Caf Confederation Cup second round‚ second leg tie against ASSM Elgeco Plus in buoyant mood after back-to-back wins.
Amakhosi will take comfort in the knowledge that they registered a clean sheet in the first leg meeting against the unheralded Madagascans.
Two late goals from Leonardo Castro saw Chiefs claim a 3-0 first in Durban which history suggests will be enough to advance to the play-off round.
South African clubs have played six previous Caf club competition ties in Madagascar and lost only once when Bidvest Wits were beaten 2-0 by AS Adema in 2011.
And just last year SuperSport United showed Chiefs the way when they defeated Elgeco Plus in the Confederation Cup‚ drawing 0-0 on the Indian Ocean island and claiming a 2-1 home victory.
Only twice before in 25 years has a South African side given up a 3-0 first leg advantage.
History favours Chiefs as they travel to Madagascar to finish off Confed Cup job
Kaizer Chiefs travel to Madagascar for Saturday’s Caf Confederation Cup second round‚ second leg tie against ASSM Elgeco Plus in buoyant mood after back-to-back wins.
Amakhosi will take comfort in the knowledge that they registered a clean sheet in the first leg meeting against the unheralded Madagascans.
Two late goals from Leonardo Castro saw Chiefs claim a 3-0 first in Durban which history suggests will be enough to advance to the play-off round.
South African clubs have played six previous Caf club competition ties in Madagascar and lost only once when Bidvest Wits were beaten 2-0 by AS Adema in 2011.
And just last year SuperSport United showed Chiefs the way when they defeated Elgeco Plus in the Confederation Cup‚ drawing 0-0 on the Indian Ocean island and claiming a 2-1 home victory.
Only twice before in 25 years has a South African side given up a 3-0 first leg advantage.
The first time was when Ajax Cape Town beat Mount Cameroon 5-1 at home and then lost 5-0 away in 2005 and Wits’ loss to Swaziland side Royal Leopards in 2015 when both legs finished 3-0 to the home sides‚ the latter advanced on penalties.
“We are looking forward to the trip to Madagascar‚” new Chiefs coach Ernst Middendorp said.
“We anticipate a tough game‚ but we will give it a go. We will do our utmost to proceed to the play offs. It is one game at the time. I really don’t know what will happen in the next match.”
Middendorp will be without talisman forward Khama Billiat‚ who is recovering from injury‚ but will likely start Castro again to give the Colombian forward the opportunity to win over jeering fans who had voiced their displeasure at him in the first leg.
The German coach was delighted with the goals of the forward and called on supporters to get behind the player.
“Castro is a goalscorer and not an entertainer. Thankfully he delivered two goals to give us a good aggregate score going away to play in Madagascar. The supporters need to understand the roles of each player.”
George Maluleka is expected to miss the fixture with a hamstring strain‚ while Philani Zulu‚ who scored the other goal in the first leg‚ had surgery on a fractured cheek bone and is also out.
Erick Mathoho and Ramahlwe Mphahlele remain sidelined through injury‚ but Middendorp will be able to call on forward Ryan Moon after he returned to training this week‚ while Mario Booysen appears to have recovered from the knock he took in the first leg against the Malagasy.
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