Downs jersey carries a lot of weight: Tinkler | Breaking News

Cape Town City coach Eric Tinkler admitted that Mamelodi Sundowns’ jersey has carried a lot of weight in the last decade after the Tshwane giants won their fifth successive title on Wednesday. Although Sundowns could not breach Cape Town City’s defence, playing a goalless draw at the Loftus Stadium, the point they picked was enough to hand them the title. 

Tinkler is convinced the Brazilians are the best team in South Africa and sees no challenger at the moment. “That jersey carries a lot of weight in the past 10 years; gone are the days when we used to speak about the dominance of Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates. Mamelodi Sundowns dominate now, and when you come up against that yellow jersey, there is going to be anxiety and nervousness,” Tinkler said.

He added that beating the record 12-time league champions will always be difficult because of the quality they possess. “If the players try to get over that, then you stand a chance of beating them as long as defensively you are organised and structured. The quality that Sundowns possesses, they are always going to be a difficult team to beat.”

The Citizens are in third place, and Tinkler said they see themselves as a top-four team. “We got to know where we fit in the bigger picture, where we see ourselves as a top-four team ideally, but we know that to compete against Sundowns, it’s never going be easy.” The 51-year-old went on to compare Masandawana’s dominance to European teams.

“What we see in world football; Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich, most teams, struggle to compete against them because they are the best teams.” On Saturday, the Capetonians play Kaizer Chiefs in Johannesburg in a rescheduled match after a Covid-19 outbreak hit Amakhosi in December. Wounded Chiefs, who are in fifth place, will be eager to win the game and leap over both Pirates [4^th] and City. 

On the other hand, newly appointed interim coach Arthur Zwane is searching for his first win in charge after Stuart Baxter’s exit recently.

By Otis Ntshangase

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