Marumo Gallants coach Dan Malesela says his side must not be fearful of Mamelodi Sundowns ahead of their Carling Knockout Cup semi-final at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium on Sunday (3pm kick-off).
The former TS Galaxy coach took over a Gallants side that found their way back into the Premiership after they purchased the status of Moroka Swallows in June this year.
Malesela was entrusted with the responsibility of leading Siwelele sa Marumo in the top-flight following his departure from his role as Baroka FC coach last season, and he has yielded immediate results, with a decent start to the league and qualification for the semi-final of the Knockout competition.
Gallants will have the advantage of familiar surroundings as they get set to host the four-time champions in Bloemfontein on Sunday, but Sundowns have the edge due to their recent run of form and a 4-1 win when the two sides met in the league last month.
The 59-year-old coach rued the mistakes Gallants made in the loss against the Brazilians.
“The biggest lesson we learned was to never try and play according to how your opponents are going to attack you; you always have to be able to dish out your own,” Malesela told Independent Newspapers yesterday.
“Stick to your own plans and what your team can do – what we cannot do, we must not even try. We tried a (new) formation (in the league match), and it backfired on us.
“We are very confident. The one big issue is trying to remove fear and too much respect.
“Yes, we must respect, but it must be reasonable respect, and it shouldn’t go up to when your match starts and you end up focusing more on Sundowns and you forget about yourself.”
Malesela believes that many have concluded that the writing is on the wall, with Sundowns expected to win the match, but he also feels that the experience he had in winning the Nedbank Cup with TS Galaxy could come in handy in Sunday’s encounter.
“Sometimes it’s good to be an underdog, and some will say it’s good to be a favourite, but I just believe it’s all talk,” he said.
Head Coach Dan Dance alongside Edga Manaka, Siyabulela Shai and Washington Arubi at Molemela Stadium this morning's Carling Knockout media session as we build-up to Sunday’s Semi Final match against Sundowns.
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“It’s up to us on how we want to do things and how we handle ourselves. I don’t think when the day comes, you would ever consider yourself an underdog and look at yourself as someone who is going to compete against a good team.
“We need to be good on the day, because, truth be told, Sundowns will be favourites, and a lot of people have written us off, taking into consideration that we lost 4-1 against them.
“But it’s a safe space for us.
“Experience is always handy, but it might not be the same.
“That is why one comes up with a level of confidence because if it was done before, then it can be done again – but it is not a given that one will do it again.”