Image copyright: Getty Images
2020 MTN8 Final
Premier Soccer League
Moses Mabhida Stadium
Durban, South Africa
Saturday, 12 December 2020
Kick-off is at 18:00 CAT.
Bloemfontein Celtic and Orlando Pirates will do battle in the
2020 MTN8 final at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday evening.
Celtic beat Mamelodi Sundowns (1-0) and defending champions SuperSport United (2-1 on aggregate) to book their spot in a second successive cup final, after losing to the Brazilians in the Nedbank Cup final at the end of last season.
Siwelele haven't won South Africa's top-eight competition since 2005 and their most recent piece of silverware came in the form of the Telkom Knockout Cup eight years ago. The Free State club beat Sundowns at the very same Moses Mabhida Stadium on that occasion and will be eyeing another upset on the KwaZulu-Natal coast this weekend.
"We are going as the underdogs, most of the people expect Pirates to beat us, so that gives us that advantage because the pressure is not on us," Celtic head coach John Maduka said.
"The pressure is on Pirates, because the majority of people think Pirates will beat us, and we have worked hard, we have planned and prepared well, and we're looking forward [to it].
"We respect Pirates, we know they are a good team but at the same time we are prepared to compete against them and we are looking forward to the final," he concluded.
Pirates beat Cape Town City (1-0) and rivals Kaizer Chiefs (5-0 on aggregate) to book their MTN8 final ticket and the Buccaneers will be eyeing their first success in the tournament since winning the trophy in back-to-back years in 2010 and 2011.
The Soweto club haven't won a trophy since beating Bidvest Wits 3-1 in the 2014 Nedbank Cup final, also hosted at the 2010 FIFA World Cup semi-final venue.
"I'm happy we have the final, this was hard work for us, with tough games behind us. Now we are happy to be in the final, and we do our best to try and win this final," Pirates head coach Josef Zinnbauer said.
"We know we have a good opponent in this game, it's a tough game, the opponent is strong and they won against Sundowns – we know this, we have the information of what they do.
"But we have a plan and I feel a very good spirit in training, the mood is good, and I think we are [headed] in the right direction," he concluded.
The two teams have already met this season with Pirates claiming a narrow 1-0 win over Celtic in the DStv Premiership at the start of November, thanks to a late goal from Siphesihle Ndlovu.
Bloemfontein Celtic vs Orlando Pirates head-to-head cup record (since 1985):
Matches: 13
Bloemfontein Celtic wins: 2
Orlando Pirates wins: 7
Draws: 4
Last five cup meetings:
2008/09 Nedbank Cup 2nd round Celtic 2-1 Pirates Malokase, Smith; Mthembu
2009/10 Telkom KO 1st round Pirates 1-0 Celtic Mabena
2009/10 Nedbank Cup 1st round Pirates 2-1 Celtic Mongalo, Makonese; Mayambela (pen)
2012/13 MTN8 quarter-final Pirates 1-0 Celtic Jali (pen)
2016/17 Nedbank Cup quarter-final Pirates 2-1 Celtic Mobara, Gabuza; Mahlasela
MTN8 - last five winners:
2015: Ajax Cape Town
2016: Bidvest Wits
2017: SuperSport United
2018: Cape Town City
2019: SuperSport United
Join Betway now & bet on the PSL and other football leagues with a R25 Sign Up Bet this is a limited time offer.
For all the latest sports news, betting tips and promotions follow Betway on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. Start playing on the go and download the Betway App.