AmaZulu coach Benni McCarthy says the misfiring Usuthu have made life difficult for themselves in the Caf Champions League — but he is confident of turning things about against Raja Casablanca at home.

Durban club Usuthu, making their Champions League debut, are set to host Moroccan giants Raja at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Friday (6pm). Both AmaZulu and Raja will aim to restore impetus to their Champions League quarterfinal ambitions.

This after they were handed defeats — AmaZulu 2-0 against ES Setif in Algeria, and Raja 2-1 against Horoya AC in Guinea — at the weekend.

Though McCarthy’s men gave a lacklustre performance in their defeat in Algiers, the coach felt the referee had made it almost impossible for AmaZulu to get something out of the match.

“I felt the referee could have handled the match differently, he could have handled the match professionally,” McCarthy said. “He was a bit biased in my opinion and allowed with certain fouls for them to play on, but when it came to us he was very quick to give yellow cards. When you are on a yellow card you tend to play a bit nervously and make mistakes but credit to Setif because of the way they started the game.”

Bafana Bafana's all-time leading goal scorer has been frustrated by the poor finishing of his players in front of goals.

“The finishing has been a big problem for us this season, not just in Caf competition but in the domestic league as well. We had chances that any player — even a 15-year-old — would score,” McCarthy said.

“But we seem to miss and when you do that you make life difficult for yourself because in a game as tough as this, when you get an opportunity you put it at the back of the net and the game can change on its head just like that.”

Despite that, McCarthy believes all the teams in Group B still have their fate in their own hands.

“The group is completely open. There’s a chance for Setif and for Horoya even,” he said. “We have Raja at home, and at home we are a bit more solid and hopefully we can win. It’s everything to play for, for Raja, for AmaZulu and all the other teams in the group.

“Yes [I still believe in our chances], I think it’s a very open group now. No team is guaranteed that they can qualify. All the teams have two matches left and if you win one or both matches you give yourselves a good opportunity, but I think the result against Setif just made it a bit difficult for us.

“But we believe in ourselves. We think we have good players, a very strong team.”

Usuthu are third in Group B with six points from four matches, three points behind top-of-the-table Raja and equal with second-placed Setif. Horoya are bottom of the log with three points.