Pirates aim to halt the Egyptians
Orlando Pirates will welcome the Egyptian giants Zamalek FC at Mbombela Stadium at 15:00 on Saturday.
The two giants meet in the CAF Confederations Cup group stages, knowing that a win will almost certainly get them to the semi-finals of the African showpiece, both having registered victories in their
first matches.
Even though the Buccaneers trashed the Egyptian royal team 4-1 in 2013 during the CAF Championship clash, this doesn’t give them the upperhand.
Many local soccer experts believe that Pirates have the mentality and manpower to repeat the 2013 results. Even the 25-year-old Pirates dribbling wizard, Thabo Rakhale believes that beating Zamalek will boost their chances of reaching the Confederations Cup semi-finals.
He is confident that they will collect maximum points against the
Egyptian giants Zamalek.
“It’s going to be a tough game against Zamalek, but we’re confident we will collect the three points. “We knew it wasn’t going to be
easy against Leopards but we still managed to get the job done,” said the former Sivutsa Stars creative midfielder, Rakhale.
“Being at Polokwane City helped me better my game. I want to take more shots at goal to improve my chances of scoring next season.”
Pirates are on top of Group B with three points followed by Zamalek FC also on three points and same goals.
The stadium spokesperson, Mthuthuzeli Qamba said everything was in order for this clash. He urged soccer supporters to go out in numbers and buy tickets, arguing that this may open doors for many such
competitions. “Remember, Pirates are doing this for the rest of the country and if they succeed, it is our country that will get the recognition, so we would like to appeal to all local supporters to come and support the team and support the Mbombela Stadium,” said Qamba.
