Orlando Pirates 0-1 Kaizer Chiefs: Manyama's strike inspires Amakhosi to Soweto Derby win

Kaizer Chiefs boosted their hopes of winning this season's Premier Soccer League (PSL) title by defeating Orlando Pirates 1-0 on Saturday afternoon.

The Buccaneers were looking to win seven matches in a row in the league for the first time since the establishment of the PSL in 1996.

Pirates coach Josef Zinnbauer, who was taking charge of his maiden Soweto Derby match, recalled Ben Motshwari to starting line-up after the midfielder recovered from an ankle injury.

On the other hand, Amakhosi were keen to avoid their third successive defeat across all competitions having lost to Highlands Park last weekend.

Chiefs coach Ernst Middendorp decided to keep faith with under-fire goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi as Amakhosi looked to complete a league double over Pirates for the second time in the PSL era.

Pirates were the better side in the opening exchanges and Akpeyi was the busier of the two keepers but he kept the hosts at bay.

The 33-year-old produced a magnificent save to deny Frank Mhango from close range with the Chiefs defence exposed following a cross from Vincent Pule.

Mthokozisi Dube then found himself in a one-on-one situation with Akpeyi, but the stopper reacted quickly and produced a smart low save to deny the full-back.

Amakhosi then began pressing the hosts with Lebogang Manyama looking lively, making dangerous runs from midfield.

Manyama managed to break the deadlock in the 30th minute after he was afforded space to shoot from outside the box and he netted with a low shot to make it 1-0 to Chiefs.

Pirates tried to grab an equalising goal before the half-time break, but the visitors stood firm at the back and the score was 1-0 to Chiefs at the interval.

The home side dominated possession after the restart, but they were wasteful in front of goal as Thembinkosi Lorch failed to control the ball well after being sent through on goal. 

Before Mhango fired over the crossbar from inside the Chiefs box after being sent up by Dube as pressure mounted on the Glamour Boys' defence. 

Middendorp reacted by introducing former PSL Footballer of the Season Khama Billiat, who replaced ineffective Colombian marksman Leonardo Castro. 

Nigeria international Akpeyi was simply unbeatable on the day as he produced three brilliant saves in quick succession to deny Lorch, Luvuyo Memela and Pule.

Chiefs then sat back in the closing stages of the match and in the end, they emerged 1-0 winners over Pirates on the day.

As a result, Amakhosi opened a seven-point lead at the top of the log, while Bucs remained third on the table.