The Belgian tactician believes Amakhosi will have to up their game when they face the Msimbazi giants in the quarter-finals
Former Black Leopards coach Luc Eymael has warned Kaizer Chiefs to up their game when they face Simba SC in the quarter-finals of the Caf Champions League.
The Tanzanian champions were drawn to face Amakhosi in the last eight with the first leg meeting set for South Africa on May 14 and the return leg planned for Dar es Salaam’s Benjamin Mkapa Stadium on May 21.
Ahead of the fixture, the Belgian tactician, who has handled teams in South Africa and Tanzania, where he was in charge of Simba’s rivals Yanga SC, has claimed for Chiefs to get past Simba, they will have to be consistent in both games and warned them to be wary of Simba when they play at home.
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“Simba are doing very well since the arrival of coach Didier Gomes Da Rosa and Milton Nienov, their goalkeeper coach, they have a stronger team than last season and a fantastic bench and playing a good brand of soccer,” Eymael told Goal on Monday.
“With Chiefs, I don’t know…they are not regular…one day they are playing, one day they are doing a counter-performance, they have to be in good shape if they want to beat Simba and qualify.”
Eymael, who has also handled Free State Stars in South Africa, has further said Chiefs also have quality players to trouble Simba in the first leg but they must be ready for a tough game when they travel to Tanzania.
“Chiefs also have quality players, but it will be a nice game, playing in Dar es Salaam is never easy, very humid and Simba will also have fans in the stadium,” Eymael continued.
“They [Chiefs] have to be ready on the pitch and out of the pitch, the game is 50/50, but both teams have to be at their best if they want to qualify, but playing in Dar es Salaam will not be easy for Chiefs, Simba are dangerous at home and Chief should work on how to counter them.”
Asked on which team will carry the day, Eymael explained: “I don’t know, I don’t want to predict the result, it is a 50/50 game but Chiefs must have consistency in the two matches to stand a chance of qualifying.”
Simba had an impressive run in the group stage and topped a tough pool that included African champions Al Ahly, AS Vita Club of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Al Merrikh of Sudan while Amakhosi made it through to the knockout stage after finishing second in Group C where they faced Wydad AC, Horoya AC, and Petro Atletico.
