It's Soweto derby week and there is not much to shout about as Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates prepare to square off in what has become more of an ordinary fixture.
For years there has been a debate about whether or not the derby still has that vibe, but I can tell you now that it's even worse than before. What do we have to look forward to as the two so-called giants of South African football prepare to lock horns? Not much, really.
At the moment, both sides are struggling for form and their spots on the Premiership table do not give any hope that they will challenge Mamelodi Sundowns for the title. Yes, I know, it's still too early in the season to tell who will be challenging Sundowns for the title, but the Soweto giants have been so inconsistent that it's almost certain that they will be watching the Tshwane giants lift the trophy yet again at the end of the campaign.
Today is Wednesday and, by this time, the excitement should be sky-high with South Africans looking forward to this encounter. The PSL should have announced by now that tickets are sold out, but there is not even a guarantee that this will be the case. It says a lot about how things have changed over the years with this fixture.
Chiefs are going through a difficult period at the moment after the dismissal of Molefi Ntseki and they had lost the first game with interim coach Cavin Johnson at the helm. They are currently in the bottom half of the table and they are struggling to score goals, with their strikers firing blanks at the moment.
Same goes for Pirates. They are not doing so well in front of goal at the moment and that makes you wonder where the goals will come from when the two sides meet on Saturday. It looks like it will be a low-scoring game and I would not be surprised if both sides are a bit cautious, to be avoid losing, which has happened previously with some of the battles between them.
The derby has always been a difficult match to predict. You want my prediction? Well, I'd say Chiefs. Not because they are in good form or they are better than Pirates at the moment, but they just seem to find a way to get a result in the derby. And looking at how things have been going for them over the last few weeks, they could use the derby to pick themselves up after a difficult period. Don't say I did not tell you.
This is a good opportunity for Johnson to make a mark as Chiefs interim coach and convince management he has what it takes to lead the team at least until the end of the season.
To be honest, the African Football League match between Mamelodi Sundowns and Wydad Casablanca is probably the one to look forward to more this weekend.
