SuperSport United hope to shake off poor form in Confederation Cup
PRETORIA – Supersport United play Kenya’s Gor Mahia at the Lucas Moripe Stadium outside Pretoria on Wednesday evening in the return leg of the Caf Confederation Cup.
Supersport's interim coach, Kaitano Tembo, says bowing out of the competition at this stage is certainly not an option for his side, who were runners-up last season.
SuperSport have had a dismal season for their lofty standards, with relegation from the top flight staring them in their face.
Successive barren draws against Orlando Pirates and Cape Town City in the Premier Soccer League, will give the Zimbabwe-born coach a cause to worry in this clash where the visitors hold a one-goal advantage after the first leg.
Tembo rested some key players in the first leg in Machakos a fortnight ago, but added that he would field his strongest squad to ensure that they stand a good chance of qualifying for the group phase of the competition.
“When we played them away, we sent a relatively young team. We had players like Luke Le Roux, Jamie Webber, Sipho Mbule and Thuso Phala and I believe we played well until they scored that late penalty.
"We cannot dwell on the past now, we need to soldier on and fully focus on Wednesday’s match,” Tembo said.
The SuperSport mentor also highlighted the importance of using home matches to one’s advantage in such competitions saying that it would allow them to play their normal game with the backing of the supporters.
Matsantsansta have been a without a win on the domestic front since a 4-2 win over Bloemfontein Celtic last February. However, they beat Angolan side Petro de Luanda 2-1 on aggregate at the previous round.
.@CapeTownCityFC vs @SuperSportFC #AbsaPrem pic.twitter.com/7SBgBFrPNZ
— SuperSport United FC (@SuperSportFC) April 15, 2018
Wednesday's Confederation Cup fixtures:
Raja Club Athletic (Morocco) vs Zanaco (Zambia) (2-0)
CARA (Congo) vs Saint George (Ethiopia) (0-1)
Akwa United (Nigeria) vs El Hilal (Sudan) (0-2)
Supersport (South Africa) vs Gor Mahia (Kenya) (0—1)
Hilal Obied (Sudan) vs UD Songo (Mozambique) (1-3)
Enyimba (Nigeria) vs Bidvest (South Africa) (1-1)
Fosa Juniors (Madagascar) vs Aduana (Ghana) (1-6)
Wolaitta Dicha (Ethiopia) vs Young Africans (Tanzania) (0-2)
RS Berkane (Morocco) vs Generation Foot (Senegal) (1-3)
Niefang (Equatorial Guinea) vs Williamsville (0-2)
Djoliba (Mali) vs MFM (Nigeria) (1-0)
Costa do Sol (Mozambique) vs Rayon Sports (Rwanda) (0-3)
African News Agency (ANA)