Judging by midweek results, Mamelodi Sundowns are the favourites going into the Carling Knockout quarter-finals against Kaizer Chiefs but former Amakhosi coach Muhsin Ertugral has explained why Chiefs have a big chance.
After a surprise 1-0 defeat to Polokwane City, where Sundowns had no shots on target the entire game, The Brazilians responded emphatically with a 3-0 victory over Cape Town City in midweek.
In contrast, the Glamour Boys did not completely get out of their shell following a 1-0 defeat to SuperSport United last weekend, after they needed two late goals to rescue a 2-2 draw against newly-promoted Magesi.
With a crunch quarter-final encounter between Masandawana and Chiefs on Saturday evening, dubbed a revenge game after Sundowns won the league encounter 2-1, the Soweto giants could be seen as underdogs.
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However, Ertugral has suggested that the game would not be a straight forward win for the Tshwane giants, after pointing out their rotation policy could come back to haunt them.
"There is danger in Sundowns' approach, because the chopping and changing I was never a friend of it. When you look at international football, where the success is coming from teams, always the momentum. Momentum means staying in rhythm," Ertugral said on SoccerBeat YouTube Channel.
"The chopping and changing proved last week that there is a problem in that, because of a huge squad, so Chiefs have a huge chance to win it.
"It's never a plus factor, you need to keep the intensity high, you can't chop and change every week, you need certain players that need to play and also certain egos, there was nothing broken, the team was extremely successful. It doesn't make sense to me, because also how do you train these players? How do you get the intensity high?" Ertugral asked.
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Unlike previous Sundowns head coach Rulani Mokwena, Manqoba Mngqithi's starting line-ups have become unpredictable, as he could afford to put players such as Teboho Mokoena and Khuliso Mudau on the bench or in the stands for at least five straight games.
