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Nedbank Cup: Semifinals Preview

Semifinals Preview

Our football pundit previews the Nedbank Cup semifinals which take place on Saturday 20 April 2019.

The Nedbank Cup presents a golden opportunity for Kaizer Chiefs to salvage what has been a disastrous season and we’re in for a treat as the mighty Amakhosi visit Chippa United at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in what should be a scintillating encounter.

Elsewhere, Steve Komphela’s Golden Arrows host Dan “Dance” Malesela’s TS Galaxy with a place in the final being a bone of contention!

Saturday 20 April


Golden Arrows 7/10 
Draw 19/10
TS Galaxy 5/1 (15:00)
Arrows have a chance of playing the final in front of their fans as the PSL has already announced that it will be hosted at Durban’s iconic Moses Mabhida Stadium. Another motivation is that Steve Komphela could potentially face his former team in Kaizer Chiefs in the decider!

Abafana Bes’thende came back from a goal down to salvage a 1-1 draw with AmaZulu in the KZN derby last week. Komphela has recently implemented the 3-4-3 formation which he used at Kaizer Chiefs at some point with the aerially-dominant Musa Bilankulu operating in the middle of the three-man defence.

Up to this stage, TS Galaxy had been very lucky with the draw having had to ease past Umvoti in the first round which they followed up by beating Jomo Cosmos and Cape Umoya United. It shall be interesting to see how Dan Malesela’s boys cope against a top-flight team. Malesela used to get the better of Komphela during their time at Chippa United and Kaizer Chiefs respectively.

This will be a tightly-contested encounter and I expect exciting football to be the order of the day. Arrows are highly-motivated to play the final in their own province and they should bring their A-game to this encounter. Malesela’s boys will want to prove a point but I foresee them falling short in the end. Back Arrows to wrap up the encounter in 90 minutes.

Chippa United 15/4
Draw 2/1
Kaizer Chiefs 8/10
Chippa United will be looking to continue their impressive run in the tournament after ousting the likes of Mamelodi Sundowns and Bidvest Wits. The game against Wits was a showpiece occasion as the Chilli Boys won on penalties after it had finished 4-4 after 120 minutes. Playing at home should motivate them to end on a high in what has been a shambolic season with the team chopping and changing coaches.

Clinton Larsen should, however, be worried about their precarious position on the log as they’re now tied on 24 points with Free State Stars who are in the relegation zone. Imagine winning the Nedbank Cup and getting relegated in the PSL promotional pay-offs.

Kaizer Chiefs currently lie seventh on the log and they clearly displayed their focus on the Nedbank Cup in their 1-1 draw against Black Leopards in the league by resting key players. After struggling through Tornado and The Magic, Ernst Middendorp’s men cruised past Cape Town City to reach this stage of the competition.

The decision to start Bruce Bvuma ahead of Virgil Vries and Daniel Akpeyi has somewhat paid dividends as it has minimised goalkeeping blunders. Andriamirado ‘Dax’ Andrianarimanana is settling in well and has been impressive in the few games he’s been involved in since the turn of the year.

I think Chippa United will make a game of it but their precarious log position is a cause for concern. Chiefs should win this clash and set up a final against their former coach in Durban. Get on Amakhosi to emerge victorious.

DOUBLE @ 2/1
Arrows win 8/10
Chiefs win 7/10

Written by @EggsBenedictZA

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