MTN8 Downs' first port of call

30 September 2016 - 10:15 By Mark Gleeson

Mamelodi Sundowns begin an odyssey of three finals inside a single month when they take on Bidvest Wits in the MTN8 decider at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit tomorrow . But with bigger fish to fry next month, when they play Zamalek of Egypt over two legs to decide the African Champions League title, they can be forgiven if their focus is not solely on the immediate job at hand.That will give Wits a slight advantage for tomorrow's encounter, which pits the two sides most likely to battle it out for league honours this season against each other. In a sense, supporters are being given a curtain-raiser of the tussle to come between the two.Both teams are heaving with talent, almost evenly matched in all departments. They have tough defenders, skilful midfielders and decent finishers. It is going to be fascinating to see how Sibusiso Vilakazi, whom Wits sold for a record R11-million to Sundowns, does in an early reunion with his former teammates.Then there is the long-standing rivalry between coaches Gavin Hunt and Pitso Mosimane. Hunt used to have the upper hand but last season Sundowns beat Wits both home and away in the league with a 5-2 goal aggregate.Winning the MTN8 has often been a curse, with successful clubs veering off course on the giddy fumes of victory, but it also offers the opportunity to enforce early season confidence and boost morale. Both Sundowns and Wits are clubs who believe they should be winning silverware regularly and hence it promises to be an absorbing challenge.OTHER FIXTURESM1 Swansea City v Liverpool:Swansea have lost their last three games, two of them at home, and rumours of managerial change have been heavy in the air. Liverpool have scored 14 goals in their last four matches.M2 Hull City v Chelsea:Since Hull confirmed Mike Phelan as manager, they have lost three and drawn one of their last four league games, negating a positive start to the season. Chelsea's defeats to Liverpool and Arsenal in their last two outings are heaping the pressure on new manager Antonio Conte.M3 Sunderland v West Bromwich Albion:One point from their opening six matches sees Sunderland firmly at the bottom of the league. West Brom have won only twice in seven matches this season but sneaked a late equaliser last weekend to get a point at Stoke.M4 Watford v Bournemouth:Two wins and three defeats from their previous five matches is the record of both of these sides. Bournemouth's home win over Everton will give them energy coming into this game. Watford were disappointing going down at Burnley on Monday.M5 West Ham United v Middlesbrough:This will be West Ham's fourth league match since moving to the Olympic Stadium in London with one victory and two defeats, the last two seeing them ship in seven goals. Promoted Middlesbrough have been beaten in four of their last five fixtures. ..

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