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Letsoalo warns Royal teammates not to underestimate Tuks in a cup match

Sazi Hadebe Sports reporter
Victor Letsoalo, the on form striker of of Royal AM
B21ILMN0602 Victor Letsoalo, the on form striker of of Royal AM
Image: Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix

Royal AM's red-hot striker Victor Letsoalo is adamant that his club is in a good position to at least reach one of their two goals this season: winning the Nedbank Cup or finishing second in the DStv Premiership to earn a spot in next season's Caf Champions League.

Royal, a club that bought Bloemfontein Celtic's status to gain a place in the elite league at the start of the current campaign, will be hosting GladAfrica outfit University of Pretoria at the Chatsworth Stadium in a Nedbank Cup quarterfinal tie on Sunday.

Letsoalo, who was linked to a move to Kaizer Chiefs before the start of the current campaign, attributed his personal form to the harmonious spirit they have in the team. It is that spirit that helped them knock out Cape Town City and Swallows FC to reach the cup's last 8.

“All in all I just think it's all about the group that we have within the team and then supporting each other whenever we get the chance to play and represent the team. We support each other.

“Even the guys that were recently signed they've been performing well since they joined us, the likes of (Mxolisi) Macupu and (Thabo) Matlaba. It's because whenever you're being given the opportunity to be part of the team, we support you. That's also helped me because they're supporting me to score goals.”

Talking about Tuks, the team they're facing on Sunday, Letsoalo said it will be important that they do not underestimate them because they're campaigning in the first division.

“I think they're number two in their log and they're going to come here (to Durban) hungry and they'll want to show us that we can't just always be beating teams on our home ground. So, ja, it gives us confidence that we're playing this game at home.”

Letsoalo has been in great form, scoring 14 league goals to help his team remain in the second spot. The Durban club comes to Sunday's game unbeaten in nine matches in all competitions this year, which include five victories in seven league matches and two wins in the cup competition.

“It will mean a lot for us to reach the final and maybe to win it because even where we are coming from (Celtic) we lost two cup finals in one year,” said the Bafana Bafana striker who is four goals behind Mamelodi Sundowns' Peter Shalulile in the Premiership leading scorers' chart.

“That really hurt us (losing to Orlando Pirates 2-1 in the MTN8 final in December 2020 and to Sundowns in the Nedbank Cup final in September 2020) and now we're looking forward to this one. We just need to reach the final and win it.”

Letsoalo, who knows what it is like playing in a Caf club competition after doing so with Celtic in the Caf Confederation Cup in 2020, said Royal are aiming to either go to the Champions League or Confed Cup next season.

“We want to go to Africa (the Caf competitions) if possible again. You see even on the log we're fighting for position two to reach that target. Either way, we want to win the cup or to finish in number two.”

For the first time since they've been campaigning in the elite league Royal players will hear the voices of their supporters on the stands.

The likes of Letsoalo and many other former Celtic players he moved with to Royal last had the fans on the stands when they were still playing Celtic in the Free State. 

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