2024/25 Betway Premiership
Matchday 11
Cape Town City v Orlando Pirates
Cape Town Stadium
Cape Town, South Africa
Wednesday, 8 January 2025
Kick-off is at 19h30
Cape Town City will be looking to build on their winning start under Muhsin Ertugral when they welcome high-flying Orlando Pirates to the Cape Town Stadium on Wednesday, January 8.
The Citizens parted ways with Eric Tinkler on December 31 after a 1-0 defeat to AmaZulu two days earlier left them just three points clear of the danger zone in 12th place.
Ertugral was brought in as the club's new technical director on January 2 and he has also been handed the reins on an interim basis until the end of the season.
The Turkish tactician guided City to a 1-0 win over former employers Kaizer Chiefs three days later and he will come up against another one of the teams he previously managed in Pirates.
Ertugral is aware of the tough task awaiting his players in midweek and wants to see them show more patience on the ball when entering the final third.
"City have been playing in patches and we were better tonight," Ertugral said in the post-match press conference after the victory over Chiefs took his team up to 11th position.
"The challenge for us [was to] find the right timing, right pass, right dribbling and sometimes when you enter the last third there's a problem and you can't enter.
"You don't have enough numbers then you keep ball possession - that is what we didn't have. We lost the ball and then obviously the counter-attack comes with vehemence and aggressiveness.
"Now we must prepare to tackle Orlando Pirates, who are not only among the best clubs in South Africa, but also one of the strongest in Africa."
The Buccaneers have a chance to reclaim pole position in the Betway Premiership as they trail Mamelodi Sundowns by three points in second spot with a game in hand.
Jose Riveiro's side had to dig deep to beat Magesi 1-0 on December 29, making it back-to-back wins after they routed Marumo Gallants 8-1 on Christmas Eve.
The Sea Robbers have an identical record to Bafana ba Style, with 22 goals scored and just four conceded from their opening 10 matches - their only defeat coming against Stellenbosch (1-0) on December 1.
Riveiro praised his players for staying focused on the task at hand over the festive season which also saw them triumph 3-0 over Stade d'Abidjan on January 4 to remain top of their group in the CAF Champions League.
"It's about ambitions, it's about dedication, it's about commitment. We went through a difficult month but you have to show that you are still a professional football player at the time that everybody is having festive days, having parties and fun," Riveiro said.
"This group continued working each and every day [of the festive season] because we are committed to achieve our goals and that won't change."
Betway Premiership Matchday 11 fixtures:
Wednesday, January 8
19h30: AmaZulu v Sekhukhune United
19h30: Cape Town City v Orlando Pirates
19h30: Kaizer Chiefs v Stellenbosch
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