Golden Arrows coach Manqoba Mngqithi is not reading too much into last weekend’s emphatic league victory over Marumo Gallants, warning that Saturday’s Carling Knockout Cup semi-final at the King Zwelithini Stadium could produce a very different outcome.
It will be the second meeting between the two teams in just a week, after Abafana Bes’thende dismantled the Limpopo side in the Betway Premiership at the same venue.
But Mngqithi, an experienced tactician who has seen both sides of cup football’s unpredictability, cautioned that back-to-back fixtures can be deceptive.
“It’s a very tough assignment. If there’s any game I don’t like in football, it’s back-to-back matches,” Mngqithi admitted.
“They always tend to give indifferent results. We are playing against a very good team. I said it before — they may not have done well in the last two matches in the province, but they are still a very formidable side that does a lot of good things.”
Gallants head into the encounter on the back of two consecutive defeats against KwaZulu-Natal sides, the latest being a 1-0 midweek loss to Durban City.
However, Mngqithi remains wary of their structure and organisation under their new coaching set-up.
“In my opinion, they are probably ranked third or fourth among the best-coached teams in the league,” he said.
“They are well-drilled and understand their patterns of play. Even when the results don’t go their way, you can see a clear football identity.”
Gallants are indeed in a transitional phase following the appointment of French coach Alexandre Lafitte to replace Abdeslam Ouaddou, who departed earlier in the season to take charge of Orlando Pirates.
The young Frenchman has impressed observers since arriving in the Premier Soccer League, guiding his side through a challenging fixture list that has already included matches against the country’s so-called “big three”.
Mngqithi, meanwhile, reflected on his own approach to managing players, suggesting that clarity and focus are essential to sustaining momentum during a busy schedule.
“I always teach my players to have focal points and not do too many things at once,” he explained. “When they are guided step by step, you get the best out of players who were once written off.”
The Arrows mentor will hope that message resonates with his team as they aim to reach their first major cup final since 2009. With the King Zwelithini Stadium once again the stage, Mngqithi knows Gallants will arrive eager to avenge last week’s heavy defeat — and that, he believes, could make all the difference.
“Cup football doesn’t follow logic,” he smiled. “What happened last week means nothing if we’re not ready mentally. Every match is a new battle.”
