Manqoba Mngqithi and Gaston Sirino

Kaizer Chiefs will travel to Durban on Saturday evening to face Golden Arrows in a Betway Premiership clash that kicks off at 17:30 at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.

Amakhosi head into the match after three wins and a draw in their opening four games, while Arrows have seven points after two wins and a draw.

Arrows coach Manqoba Mngqithi believes his team’s 2-1 midweek victory over Magesi FC was crucial, not only because it was their second win of the new campaign, but also because it gave them momentum ahead of facing Kaizer Chiefs.

MANQOBA MNGQITHI PREVIEWS KAIZER CHIEFS MATCH

The 53-year-old tactician, who previously won multiple league titles with Mamelodi Sundowns, insists the bigger challenge now is managing the “anxiety” that naturally comes with playing Kaizer Chiefs, also known as Amakhosi.

“…Going into the Kaizer Chiefs’ game, I don’t think it’s up to me to motivate them [Arrows players], unlike the game of Magesi,” Mngqithi said in the pre-match conference. “Against Magesi, I have to dig very deep just to make them understand how important it is to get the three points.

“But against Kaizer Chiefs, the level of intrinsic motivation is very high. You must just try to control the anxiety, because when the motivation is that high, there is a very big chance of anxiety, which is an enemy of good technical execution. When you are anxious, you can’t execute technically the way you want to.

“So, yes, winning against Magesi is a motivation, but I think even if you had lost three matches before playing Kaizer Chiefs, when you play them, the level of motivation is naturally very high,” Mngqithi concluded.

GASTON SIRINO EXPECTED TO SHOW HIS TRUE QUALITY

According to the Amakhosi assistant coach Khalil Ben Youssef, Sirino seems to have turned the page on a rocky period, and is showing better attitude and new energy.

“I think Sirino will come back this season,” Youssef said. “He came back this season with a very good attitude, a very good performance.

“We also discussed with him a bit about his ideas and what he thinks about the season. He is so excited for the season, he wants to perform, to help the team,” Youssef added.