TS Galaxy head coach Sead Ramovic says their 4-1 friendly win over Mamelodi Sundowns during the FIFA international break has brought confidence into the squad.
Galaxy started the new season with three defeats in three games, the only other club that could match that was AmaZulu, who fired Pablo Franco Martin as a result.
However, the Rockets experimented during the break with some positional changes and new personnel and secured an impressive win over Sundowns at Lucas Moripe Stadium during the recent break.
“We are still confident about this season, I see how they train, and also the last game, a friendly game, we played Sundowns, where we won 4-1, it was beautiful to see that we have quality in our team,” Ramovic said about their poor start to the season.
“I am absolutely sure we will bounce back, because this team has the ability to turn around this negativity. We don’t feel sorry for ourselves, we can come out of this together, we have quality, winning mentality.
“My players have the character and we will start now with this cup, we will win this game and then start the next games, analyse them and also win.”
Having finished last season in sixth place, just one point off the fourth-placed Sekhukhune United for CAF inter-club football, the club lost several key players again, including Pogiso Sanoka, Fiacre Ntwari and Bradley Mojela who joined SuperSport United, Kaizer Chiefs and Stellenbosch respectively.
Join the iDiski Times WhatsApp Channel for all latest SA football news directly to your phone.
But this competition, the Carling Knockout, was one that elevated their game and confidence for the 2023/24 season, where they reached the final, and ironically Mojela opened the scoring before they eventually lost to Steve Barker’s side on penalties.
“It’s not easy to lose half our team every season, then you don’t invest and get players that didn’t play so much in other teams,” Ramovic said.
“The players we get in, they need some time to adapt for our intensity style of play, it takes time like we did in the last seasons, when you see 15 players in the past two seasons move on to other clubs, it’s an achievement.
“It speaks to our great work and also to our great character the players have, because if they don’t want to improve, we don’t stand a chance, but it takes time, we had a nice run, improving every year, the club, the team and players.
“We reached the best position in the clubs history last season, with the most points, I think we can be proud of it but this season, yes, we started slow, not what we wanted. But I will continue to coach, teach, and educate my players, to inspire them.
“I’m here to help them realise what they can achieve and we as staff are proud when we hear some of our players when they come to us, saying our perspective on football and tactical awareness helps them and their understanding of football.
“It’s beautiful to hear when they understand football in a new light, we try to take them to the level where they can take the next steps of their career.”
Galaxy host Chippa United in their round of 16 tie at the Mbombela Stadium on Sunday afternoon (15h00).
Check All Carling Knockout Last 16 Fixtures HERE.
