TWO former Kaizer Chiefs personalities are plotting against their former team ahead of Sunday’s clash against Cape Town City FC at the Cape Town Stadium in Green Point.
Muhsin Ertuğral, a former Chiefs coach who served spells with the Naturena-based club, is the newly appointed City coach who replaced out-of-favour Eric Tinkler a few days ago.
He has been Cape Town-based for many years and has a strong link with football in the Mother City. He coached Santos and had several spells with Ajax Cape Town.
Lorenzo Gordinho, the City centre-back also had strong links with Chiefs. He played there for seven seasons and was a member of the team which won the 2013-14 Premiership and MTN 8 titles under Stuart Baxter.
The Ertuğral - Gordinho factor could go a long way to bolster the team which tasted defeat in their last home outing against AmaZulu last Sunday. That was City’s third loss in the last four outings and club boss John Comitis has decided to make a change.
The defeat against AmaZulu saw the team plummet to 12th on the league standings, three points above the relegation zone.
Gordinho says the team has been stung by the defeat against AmaZulu and is focused on attaining “a positive result against Chiefs” on Sunday afternoon.
“I feel like since that AmaZulu result, the guys have been focused. We are looking to put in our all over the next few days in the hope of giving better performances,” said Gordinho.
“We have been working hard as a team in the hope of producing a positive result against Chiefs.
“Everybody is looking forward to the game. It's a big game and we want to make it a good game, an exciting game.
“We are looking to come away with a win and bring positive energy to the squad. Our last result against AmaZulu wasn’t what we wanted.
“I would like to thank all the supporters who have been with us over this festive period. We appreciate the support and ask you to join us on Sunday when we take on Kaiser Chiefs. We will give our all for you.”
Although Ertuğral has been out of the PSL for six years, he is a regular at City’s matches and has maintained a strong interest in the performances of local Premiership teams. Ertuğral has always been a keen student of football, and his tactical knowledge could prove the undoing of Chiefs in their upcoming clash.
Three days after the Chiefs clash, City will host Orlando Pirates, a team Ertuğral also coached at one time. The Pirates match will be played on Wednesday, January 8.