With the Premier Soccer League (PSL) title race taking shape, former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Brian Baloyi believes Kaizer Chiefs are in the pound seats.
‘Spiderman’ is of the view that, although the Glamour Boys are running away as hot favourites, his former club Mamelodi Sundowns will not make it easy for coach Ernst Middendorp’s troops.
Masandawana are yet to bag a win out of three league matches since the restart and their loss to Cape Town City on Monday night was a massive blow to their title aspirations since they now trail Amakhosi by six points.
"Based on how they play, it won't be easy. But they [Sundowns] won't make it easy for Chiefs," Baloyi told DailySun.
"After their clash [with Polokwane City], Clinton Larsen said it: 'these lockdown playing conditions favours small teams because they're used to playing in front of small crowds'. But not so for big teams.
'For me, Chiefs have to use their senior players to stand up and be counted. They're just looking at Sundowns and forget about others.”
Fresh from a hard-fought victory over Rise and Shine last weekend, Baloyi explained that Chiefs need to at least, open the gap to nine points to ensure they are comfortable at the top.
“They need to convert the chances they create. They need to get to nine points clear to make sure they gun for the title,” he added.
“Another loss or draw would be four points lost, and Sundowns might catch up. They need to collect points as quickly as possible.
"It's in their hands. In such situations, to win, senior players must come to the party and take control of the club. Senior players must hold it."
Although Larsen’s men looked like they were cruising to a convincing win at Loftus Versfeld Stadium, where they led 2-0 midway through the second half, Chiefs fought back to emerge as victors.
Baloyi, though, believes they made it tough for themselves.
“By now they should have opened a big gap. They made it difficult for themselves. They saw how Wits played against Downs and they knew the team doesn't give give-up easily,” he continued.
‘Sundowns have experience in such cases. Chiefs' problem is scoring goals on the run of play. But they must not rely solely on the heads. Goals will come from crosses. Opportunities are there from open play, but they must take them."
Meanwhile, the Soweto giants are preparing to face off against Bloemfontein Celtic whom they meet on Wednesday evening while the reigning PSL champions will look to bounce back against Maritzburg United on Friday.
