Talking points ahead of this weekend's MTN8 action as Orlando Pirates rely on stability

The new 2020/21 season gets underway this weekend with the MTN8 quarter-final matches scheduled to take place across South Africa. 

Eight Premier Soccer League (PSL) clubs will battle it out once again with the first piece of silverware of the campaign firmly in their sights. 

These are the teams which finished in the top eight on the PSL standings last season and qualified for the lucrative MTN8 competition.  

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic will see a delayed start of the new campaign after the late completion of the previous term in a bio-bubble in Gauteng. 

However, the new season will be played at the home venues of the clubs, after the government opened up inter-provincial travel, but fans are still not allowed to come to the stadiums.

What's At Stake

The MTN8 remains the country's richest cup competition as the eventual winners will pocket a whopping R8 million prize money.

While the runner-up and other six clubs get the same participation fee of R800 000 hence the tournament has become well known as 'Wafa Wafa', the winner takes all.

SuperSport United are the defending champions and they will start their title defence against tournament debutants, Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila (TTM), who will be at home in Thohoyandou on Saturday afternoon.

Orlando Pirates will then host their hoodoo team Cape Town City in Soweto on Saturday evening, while record-15 time MTN8 champions Kaizer Chiefs are set to welcome Maritzburg United in Nasrec, Johannesburg on Sunday afternoon.

Reigning PSL champions Mamelodi Sundowns will square off with Bloemfontein Celtic in Tshwane on Sunday afternoon in a repeat of last month's Nedbank Cup final. 

This winning teams are expected to advance to the two-legged semi-finals where the winners on aggregate will progress to the final. 

Bogey Teams 

Kaizer Chiefs and their Soweto rivals Orlando Pirates will be taking on teams which have become their bogey teams in recent years.

Chiefs had a frustrating record against Maritzburg last season, failing to defeat coach Eric Tinkler's side in their three meetings across all competitions.

Maritzburg secured two wins over Amakhosi, including the Telkom Knockout semi-final victory, while the other game ended in a draw with Daylon Claalsen missing a penalty which could have handed Tinkler's side the win. 

On the other hand, Cape Town City have proved to be Pirates' hoodoo team and they are enjoying a six-match unbeaten run against the Buccaneers.

The Citizens have recorded two wins and four draws in their last six meetings with Bucs, including a 1-0 win in their most recent clash which was a league game two months ago.

Furthermore, City have lost just once against Pirates across all competitions since the club's inception in 2016 with the two teams having met nine times in the last four years. 

New Coaches & Players 

PSL clubs have been busy reinforcing their squads and making changes in their technical teams ahead of the new term.

Mamelodi Sundowns have been very active in the transfer market having brought in some exciting new players such as Kermit Erasmus, Aubrey Modiba and Peter Shalulile - making them one of the favourites to win the MTN8.

However, the sudden departure of coach Pitso Mosimane has seen the club appoint Manqoba Mngqithi and Rhulani Mokwena as co-coaches and they will be assisted by Steve Komphela.

The decision to bring in an experienced coach like Komphela to work under Mngqithi and Mokwena has surprised many and it will be interesting to see how the trio will work together.

Sundowns' Gauteng rivals, Chiefs, are banned from signing and registering players, but they are awaiting an outcome from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) following their transfer ban appeal hearing.

Amakhosi parted ways with Ernst Middendorp last month after he failed to win the PSL title and the club's decision to replace the German tactician with Gavin Hunt has been hailed as a masterstroke.

Hunt is one of the most successful coaches in the PSL era and he will be hoping to lead Amakhosi to a MTN8 title triumph in order to ease the pressure on himself and also end the club's five-trophy drought.

Do Pirates Have The Edge?

PSL Big three clubs - Chiefs, Sundowns and Pirates - are the favourites to win the lucrative tournament.

However, Pirates' stability gives them the edge over their rivals with the club having kept their faith in Josef Zinnbauer, who revived the team after taking charge in December 2019.

The German tactician guided the Buccaneers to a third-place finish in the league and they seemed to have finally found the winning formula as the team ended the recent season with a three-match winning run.

Pirates' top performers from last season, Wayne Sandilands, Happy Jele and Frank Mhango, remain part of the team as the Soweto giants look to end their six-year trophy drought. 

The club's shrewd transfer business has improved Zinnbauer's squad with Thulani Hlatshwayo, Thabang Monare, Deon Hotto and Terrence Dzvukamanja having arrived at the Houghton-based giants as new signings.

The former Bidvest Wits players have brought some needed experience in key areas like defence and attack and their winning mentality could help propel the Soweto giants to a MTN8 triumph.