Orlando Pirates skipper Nkosinathi “Bhodlela” Sibisi hasn’t hidden that they aim to ride the wave of Bafana Bafana’s World Cup qualification when they face Congolese side St Eloi Lupopo.
Bucs and Lupopo meet in the CAF Champions League second preliminary round first leg in Lubumbashi on Sunday (3pm).
Sibisi alongside six of his Bucs teammates – Oswin Appollis, Thalente Mbatha, Evidence Makgopa, Sipho Mbule, Sipho Chaine and Tshepang Moremi – was part of the Bafana side that thumped Rwanda 3-0 to secure their first outright qualification since 2002 at Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday.
“The confidence we’ve gained from qualifying Bafana for the World Cup will help us a lot in DRC on Sunday. We’ve returned with a boosted morale and I hope we can use that against Lupopo,” Sibisi told Sowetan on Thursday.
All Bafana’s goals against Rwanda were scored by Pirates players in Mbatha, Appollis and Makgopa. The second leg is set for Orlando Stadium the following Saturday. The winner of this fixture will advance to the group stages.
While the Sea Robbers have already played 14 matches across all competitions this season, Lupopo haven’t played any game domestically, as the new Congolese league campaign hasn’t kicked off yet.
The confidence we’ve gained from qualifying Bafana for the World Cup will help us a lot in DRC on Sunday.
— Pirates skipper Nkosinathi “Bhodlela” Sibisi
Last week, continental sports publication Afrique Sport reported that “the footballing landscape in DRC was currently shrouded in uncertainty as the national league, which typically kicks off in June, remains without a start date”.
Sibisi admits that facing Lupopo, who haven’t yet competed on the domestic front, could be advantageous to them, although he insisted they were not obsessing about that.
“The fact that we have already played more games than them this season can give us that slight advantage because we have momentum now. We have our rhythm going, but we are not relying on that because we know that if we are not on song on the day, we can suffer,” Sibisi said.
“In fact, we focus more on ourselves. We know what we have to do on the day ... We need a positive result that will make our job a little bit easier in the second leg at home.”
Sowetan
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.