Richards Bay co-coach Vasili Manousakis has acknowledged that they “are playing against the best team by far” as they host Mamelodi Sundowns at King Zwelithini Stadium later today (19:30).
Manousakis also revealed that his side will be up against it because Sundowns hardly give their opponents a sniff of ball possession.
Sundowns, since the appointment of Rulani Mokwena as the head coach in October, have beaten all that came in front of them, winning all four league matches without conceding a goal.
They have scored 12 goals in the process and Bay will have to be the first club to score against Sundowns under Mokwena’s reign, with Sundowns last conceding a goal in the league against Golden Arrows in September.
In the middle of these four successive wins under Mokwena, Sundowns also won the Carling Black Label Cup in November where they also did not concede a goal and scored seven goals in just two matches.
“We are playing against the best team in the country and I think by far,” said Manousakis.
“They are on an incredible run. I think it’s eight consecutive wins in a row and I can’t remember the number of clean sheets. I think it is five or six in a row, so you don’t get many chances against them.
“They have a fantastic technical team, astute coaches. So we are really up against it.”
However, a game between these two best-performing teams at the moment might not be as flowing as one would have liked. Rain has been pouring very hard in Durban and so was Friday morning.
This might leave the pitch waterlogged; something that is a major concern for Manousakis.
“Looking at the weather now, it’s torrential downpours, probably not going to help the game in any way,” said a concerned Manousakis.
“It will make it a bit unstable where anything can happen on a rainy day, soggy pitch, muddy pitch. So let’s see how that pans out.
“But we are going to try our best and go for it, but it is never easy playing against Sundowns.”
The former AmaZulu assistant coach’s side have done well in their debut league too, lying third in the table with 26 points after 14 matches.
Bay already knows how it’s like to play against Sundowns. They were hammered 4-0 in the Nedbank Cup last season in the first round when they were campaigning in the Motsepe Foundation Championship, with Sundowns going all the way to win the Ke Yona Cup.
