Zothwane urges Sekhukhune to stay confident at intimidating Orlando Arena

Sekhukhune United coach Papi Zothwane says his players must handle the intimidating atmosphere at Orlando Amstel Arena when they face defending champions Orlando Pirates in the Carling Knockout quarter-finals on Saturday afternoon.

Babina Noko reached the last eight with a 3-1 victory over Richards Bay in the round of 16 last weekend. Their reward is a trip to face Pirates, whose home support is expected to create significant pressure for the visitors.

Zothwane, speaking at a press conference at the PSL headquarters in Parktown, Johannesburg, acknowledged the influence of the Orlando crowd but said Sekhukhune had prepared their players mentally for the occasion.

“Every team we play against in the Betway Premiership, our approach is always to be better than the team to win the matches. Uyazi vele ukuthi kunzima (You know well that it’s tough) at (Orlando Amstel) Arena, because of the crowd, the intimidation will always be there,” Zothwane said.

The 45-year-old, who previously coached Richards Bay, also referred to the confidence held by Pirates supporters when their team plays at the venue.

“Because Pirates supporters when they go there, their motto is always that ‘No one comes out at Arena’ but as coaches we prepare our players mentally to know what is at stake, because they know that if we win, we go to the next round.”

Zothwane insisted that Sekhukhune’s preparation would not change because of the opposition, arguing that no coach could approach a match against a major club with fear.

“And we approach games differently. The players know what they are facing at Arena. As I said before, we’re very much confident, because I don’t think there is a coach that can approach a game, whether it’s Pirates or Sundowns or whichever team, you’re approaching it with fear,” he said.

Instead, the Sekhukhune coach believes self-belief and trust in his squad can help his side produce a result that sends them into the semi-finals.

“You have to be confident in yourselves, in your approach and even us as Sekhukhune, we’re confident in our approach and we believe in the players that we have that they can win us matches,” he added.

“Even on Saturday, we believe in our approach that it will take us through. The game has different results but we always go with confidence and arrogance to say, even us we’re better, we can play, we can win matches and our players are capable of winning the match.”