Cape Town Spurs head coach Ernst Middendorp was happy to get a win over TS Galaxy, and also with how his team kept ‘the best striker in the league’ goalless.
Spurs raced into a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Ashley Cupido and Katlego Maphathe, which forced Sead Ramovic into making three early changes, including bringing on Samir Nurkovic.
Middendorp knows the Serbian striker well, having been key in bringing him to Kaizer Chiefs in 2019, and said that Nurkovic caused them a lot of problems, adding that he felt he remained the best striker in the league.
“We’re all happy to make the three points,” Middendorp said at the post match.
“Ja, probably the light is a little bit brighter in the basement. We’re still looking for the light in the end of the tunnel. But we will not see it in March and we will not see it in April, probably earliest in the end of May.
“That’s something where we have to believe to keep going. And ja, that’s definitely a game with a different approach in the first half, a bit more out of a compact, not jumping up and down, but I think a very clear, good shape.
“In the right moment to have the pressure on the ball, on the right moment to do the corner runs, supporting each other. And I think at that time fully deserved a leading of 2-0, we had probably another moment we could have done a third one. But anyway, end of the first half already.
“Unfortunately, I’m obviously the only one in the country who values Samir Nurkovic as the best striker in the league. Even today, he is the best striker in the league.
“It’s difficult to get him, he is good on the movement, he is good on the legs, he’s good on the heading. He is clever, smart, tried, three four times to get the penalty. He has a portfolio of aspects.
“Ja, when he comes in, I was very happy not to see him starting unfortunately, came too early, he should have stayed a little bit longer outside.
“But we had our problems with him. There’s no doubt about it. But the second half of course, it was it was expected that we have a little bit more to do, to do the defensive work.
“But I think when it com to the mentality, it comes to the attitude, it comes to the behaviour of a group, of a team, what we try to produce inside the entire club, everybody is involved, really, from the management, ownerships and so on to really give support into the right direction that we can see what we have seen today in the second half.”
