Michaelson Ntokozo Gumede

By Ntokozo Gumede

Journalist


Furman: We can beat anyone on our day

'We know that if we play to the maximum of our ability, we can beat anyone'.


“That is going to be the mental approach going into the games that we have left,” said a confident Dean Furman ahead of their capital city derby with rivals Mamelodi Sundowns on Thursday at Loftus.

 The adversaries will square off for the third time this campaign after clashing in the Telkom Knockout and MTN8 earlier on the season, and are scheduled for another meeting a week later at Lucas Moripe.

Furman says that as hyped as the match may be, Matsatsantsa will approach the spectacle like any other league game.

“There are three points at stake, whether you are playing a team that’s at the top or a team at the bottom of the log, it’s as big as any other game,” he said.

Furman continued: “However, it is a big game, they are our local rivals, it is a derby and they are a team that have been very successful, they have great players.

“Regardless of what’s going on in their recent few games, we know that they can turn on any time and beat anyone themselves.”

United, who have not tasted victory against their crosstown rivals in open play in the last 10 meetings, will be without the influential Thabo Mnyamane who is serving a suspension.

“Thabo has been unbelievable this season, I’ve said before that he doesn’t get the quite the praise he deserves, but regardless of that, Thabo gets on with his work. I was really delighted for him to get his Bafana Bafana call-up because it is the least he deserved.

“Obviously to miss him is going to be a blow, but for whoever comes into the team will get a massive opportunity too; we have got players who can come in. Thuso Phala has not been playing as much as he would have liked recently; hopefully we see Thuso in the coming weeks,” Furman said.