Durban — Royal AM head coach John Maduka has admitted that there is pressure to beat Kaizer Chiefs once again when the two teams meet in the quarter-finals of the Nedbank Cup.
Thwihli Thwahla will play host to an in-form Amakhosi outfit at the Chatsworth Stadium on Sunday in a 6 pm kick-off.
Maduka’s men will be looking to add to their impressive record against Chiefs since their arrival to the top flight in 2021.
The Pietermaritzburg-based club, under the mentorship of Maduka, have never lost a match in any competition against the Glamour, a record that saw them win twice at home and once away and are three up on Chiefs.
The 52-year-old coach, back in the hot seat after a brief spell with Maritzburg United has expressed that although their record against Chiefs gives them a boost in morale it also brings about a certain level of pressure.
“Is it an advantage or pressure?” He responded to whether the previous record will have a bearing on the next one.
He further added: “I think that’s what makes the game very very difficult. It’s not just Chiefs but every team that plays Royal AM. You’ll find that they played totally differently the previous week but against Royal AM it's war.
“We can say it’s an advantage to us but also there’s pressure on us. The advantage is that it gives us the confidence to say we’ve beaten this team before so we can do it again, especially at home. Even though we know they have supporters all over the country but the games we’ve beaten them in, we were also in front of their supporters.”
The hosts will need to quickly shrug off their latest habit of conceding goals coming up against a side that’s scored six goals in their last three matches and have lost just one of the ten outings.
While Royal AM have conceded nine goal in their last three matches, a buck they’ll be looking to stop with the introduction of veteran defender Happy Jele into the mix.
Maduka did not shy away from his side’s leafiness at the back and revealed that it was a department they were paying special attention to ahead of this encounter.
“If you look at our games, we’ve been conceding a lot of goals and that’s not right also considering the goals we’re conceding we’re not supposed to be conceding.
“We’ll have to prepare in that area because it’s a concern for us so we’re working very hard and we’re evening trying different combinations in the back.”
IOL Sport