Mamelodi Sundowns set to examine Cape Town City's title credentials closely

Benni McCarthy will know over the next 10 days whether his Cape Town City side can mount a serious Absa Premiership title challenge with home and away league clashes against Mamelodi Sundowns‚ and a visit to BidVest Wits.

City moved to within five points of table-topping Wits on Saturday‚ with a game in hand‚ following a battling 3-2 victory over bottom side Maritzburg United in which they were comfortably the better side‚ but allowed the visitors to stay in the content.

City visit Sundowns on Wednesday and then have an away clash with Wits next Saturday‚ before hosting Sundowns on March 5 in what will be a season-defining week for the team.

“We are fighting to stay in the hunting pack for honours. We know we are a little bit out of our depth‚ but listen‚ no-one told Leicester [City] that they were out of their depth‚” McCarthy said.

“They just believed and kept on rolling game-by-game‚ you try and win every game that you can and then you never know what happens at the top.

“That is the same attitude and route that we want to take. We want to take care of our business and then we leave it up to everyone else. There is no easy games. Teams are fighting to stay in the league‚ for top eight or to win the league.”

McCarthy suggests that‚ in a way‚ the fixtures against Sundowns and Wits might be less intense than those against teams fighting for survival at the bottom of the league.

“The games that we expect to be difficult will probably just be more tactical‚ how to outsmart each other‚ because the intensity won’t be like it was today.

"Maritzburg ran until the last minute because they were fighting for survival. Sundowns? You are not going to get that from them. Wits‚ the same.

“We believe in ourselves and we stopped caring what happened in other people’s camps. Chiefs‚ Pirates‚ Wits‚ SuperSport … we are only focussing on ourselves and worrying what is on our plate. We don’t want to be greedy and just worry about what is in front of us and we work on a daily basis towards that.”

City claimed their win over Maritzburg after goals from Thami Mkhize‚ Gift Links and Riyaad Norodien‚ but were left to sweet to the end after conceding twice in the second half.

“We started like a house on fire and we had an abundance of possession because‚ like I know Eric‚ he likes to hit on the counter‚ he is not too bothered about his team not having the ball. They try to suck you in and when you lose it‚ they capitalise on that‚” McCarthy says.

“Maritzburg showed a lack of enthusiasm‚ they just sat back and allowed us to work them side to side and I think that frustrated my team a little bit. We started losing our discipline. We stopped doing the right things.

“We started flicking and tricking‚ flipping left‚ right and centre. We became a little bit arrogant and that’s when things turned a little against us and allowed Maritzburg to slowly began creeping into the game.”

McCarthy says some stern words to Links got the youngster to fire and he responded with a superb goal to hand City the lead with 20 minutes remaining.

“At 1-1‚ we stayed calm and that woke us up‚ we went back into fifth gear. We brought on Norodien because Surprise [Ralani] was not having the best of games.

“I asked Gift to be a little bit more direct because every time he kept playing backwards‚ when he got the ball into good positions he dribbled backwards and allowed the team to get back into a defensive shape.

“I was shouting at him and asking him if he wanted to come and sit by me on the bench if he goes back one more time. But when he starts being like [Raheem] Sterling and Leroy Sane‚ they are unplayable‚ and he has to do the same.

“He does the one thing I ask of him and the ball ends up in the back of the net! I can’t understand why these young players don’t believe in their own ability.”

McCarthy says the win was fully deserved‚ despite the nervous finish.

“Overall it was clear that if it was a draw or we lost the game‚ we had beaten ourselves‚ we weren’t beaten by a better team. We were miles ahead of them.”