Kaizer Chiefs’ media manager Vina Maphosa has stood by his view made on social media that the club can still be in the Absa Premiership title mix should they beat Maritzburg United at FNB Stadium on Saturday.

Maphosa got some stick from some commentators for his Tweet made on Wednesday that sixth-placed Chiefs‚ eight points behind leaders Orlando Pirates‚ can be back in the title race if they beat last-placed Maritzburg.

Maphosa told TimesLIVE that it is not a belief at Chiefs that Amakhosi can still challenge‚ but simply a mathematical reality.

Chiefs (22 games played) have a game in hand on Pirates (23)‚ and if they beat United will be just five points behind the leaders.

“It’s not a belief. It’s what we’ve planned for from the start of the season – to win the league‚” Maphosa said.

“So that hasn’t changed. It will only change when you do your maths and you say‚ ‘No‚ out of all mathematical possibilities‚ we can’t make it’.

“So we are in there. If we win the next match we are on 35 points‚ we are not far off; we still have a chance to go for it.

“So it’s not a belief – that’s how it is. When we prepare‚ we prepare to win the game with the aim of winning the league.

“There are no runaway leaders or someone who has got 20 points like some other leagues in the world. It’s very tight.

“There are teams who still have to battle it among themselves. There is the Pirates-Sundowns match coming up‚ and tussles between the teams.

“So there are possibilities for everybody. Everyone has got ambitions.

“But we are focused on the league and until we are ruled out mathematically‚ we will then say perhaps the plan didn’t work out‚ and we will focus maybe on the cup and the next season.”

In the top six‚ Pirates have 40 points from 23 games‚ Mamelodi Sundowns have 40 from 22‚ Cape Town City 39 from 23‚ Bidvest Wits 38 from 22‚ SuperSport United 35 from 22 and Chiefs 32 from 22.

Maphosa also pointed out that currently among the tightly-packed front six the front-runners have all had recent setbacks‚ and no team has pulled away to establish a commanding lead.

“And the league is a marathon‚” he said.

“And things happen. You get a team who are on the top getting injuries‚ red cards‚ getting issues that emerge at the last moment.

“We have experience of that. We had a 12-point gap once [in 2013-14]‚ when Sundowns took the league. And this is eight points.”

Chiefs beat Highlands Park 3-2 at Moses Mabhida Stadium this past Saturday.