Cape Town City planning for inevitability of promotion-relegation playoffs

Cape Town City’s caretaker coach Diogo Peral says they have to be realistic and plan for the strong possibility of having to compete in the end-of-season promotion-relegation playoffs as a 15th place finish in the Betway Premiership looks likely for the club.

City’s club record winless streak was extended to 14 games on Saturday after they lost 2-0 at home to champions Mamelodi Sundowns.

It left them three points adrift in 15th place and with two games to go not likely to catch up to any of the sides above them, unless there is a drastic turn in fortunes.

“I think we have to be realistic,” Peral said after the match at the Cape Town Stadium where Tashreeq Matthews and Iqraam Rayners scored on both sides of the break to keep Sundowns on course for the title.

“Now ‘ve we got to get a win and a draw maybe, but even that possibly won't be enough. So what are we looking at? Two wins? We knew that this was a game that if we could get something out of it, then we'd be looking in a better place.

“But we've also started thinking about what it is that we're going to do and how we're going to plan if we're in the playoffs. We have to. We'd be stupid not to,” Peral insisted.

“You know, we’ll concentrate on the next 90 minutes. We always put all the effort into the training sessions and everything we can from the next 90 minutes,” he said of their next match in a fortnight away to Polokwane City on May 17.

“But we’ll also be looking over our shoulders and seeing how the guys are doing in the NFD and, you know, keep ourselves open to all the possibilities there.”

Saturday’s clash against Sundowns was always going to be a tough one for City, who had beaten the Brazilians only once in their past 10 head-to-head meetings.

“It's a team that you know that if you go behind to and you have to chase, then you've got a problem. We tried to stay in the game as long as possible and then hoped to maybe take some more risks in the second half. But once we conceded the goal, it becomes difficult to chase Sundowns, even at home, especially in the situation we in,” the City coach added.