‘Big Three’ & Gallants gear up for Nedbank Cup semifinals

South African football’s ‘Big Three’ – Mamelodi Sundowns, Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs – will join Marumo Gallants in battling for a place in the final of the 2024-25 Nedbank Cup.

The two semifinal matches will be played on Sunday 13 April, with Pirates hosting Marumo Gallants at Orlando Stadium in the mid-afternoon kick-off, before a heavyweight meeting of Sundowns and Chiefs at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in the early evening.

Both the Buccaneers and the Brazilians will have to overcome the disadvantage of having been in intense CAF Champions League action this past midweek.

Sundowns held Esperance de Tunis 0-0 away on Tuesday to secure a 1-0 aggregate triumph overall, while Pirates also played out a stalemate, at home to MCA Alger on Wednesday, to progress 1-0 overall.

The two therefore advanced into the semifinals of the continental competition and could yet meet in the final late next month.

“This win is for our fans in South Africa, the Mamelodi Sundowns supporters and for the Motsepe family. They believed in us, and I’m happy we could deliver this moment for them,” said Sundowns coach Nasreddine Nabi.

He added, “We have a tough Nedbank Cup semifinal on Sunday. First, we’ll let the players recover emotionally and physically and then we get back to work.”

SOLID GALLANTS

Gallants – who are looking to reach the Nedbank Cup final for the second time, having lost out to Sundowns in 2021-22 – come into their clash against Pirates in solid form, as they are unbeaten in their last three outings and most recently drew 1-1 with SuperSport United in a league fixture on 5 April.

Bahlabane ba Ntwa also famously defeated the Buccaneers 2-0 in early March in coach Abdeslam Ouaddou’s first game in charge – and he is keen for a repeat showing on Sunday in Soweto.

“There are no easy games. We will play outside [away from home]. We will try to make a surprise again or to surprise people again,” said the Moroccan tactician.

DESPERATE CHIEFS

Chiefs, meanwhile, desperately need to win against Sundowns in the second semifinal.

Not only will it keep alive their hopes of ending a decade-long wait for silverware, it will also potentially determine the fate of coach Nasreddine Nabi and his technical team – with the Amakhosi’s poor league campaign undermining his chances of remaining in charge.

However, a cup success would win favour with both the club’s management and demanding supporters.

“We think the players [in the last match against TS Galaxy, a 1-1 league draw] did everything they could to get the good results,” said Nabi.

“I feel we are going through a moment of bad luck because of the lack of results. But we’re going to hang in there, everyone has to push more and work hard.”

The two semifinal winners will advance to the Nedbank Cup final, which will be played on Saturday 31 May.