Chiefs on a high, Pirates at a low: but don't be fooled by pre-season friendlies

Inside Knowledge: Musona scored on Sunday and
has shrugged off injury concerns as "cramp"

ON the face of it the South African domestic football season got off to very different starts for the two Soweto giants over the weekend.

At Orlando on Friday night, the Pirates were unable to breach the spotty Leopards defence in a disappointing 0-0 draw which saw new striker Lennox Bacela fail to score against the very ordinary Congo champions.

At Loftus Versfeld on Sunday, Kaizer Chiefs lifted the Gauteng Cup with a rip-roaring 4-1 win over Bloemfontein Celtic – and Knowledge Musona scored the third on his return to the club on loan.

The social networks made a meal of football’s long-awaited return. Roger de Sa was widely lampooned as a coach in crisis after his too-little-too-late decision to resort to two strikers as the Buccaneers desperately attempted to get their African Champions League Group A challenge off to a winning start.

But Stuart Baxter, after a first season which saw the AmaKhosi lift the PSL and Nedbank Cup double, could do no wrong as his side demolished Siwelele – Willard Katsande scored with a curling cross and even rarely-glimpsed Kaizer Motaung Junior slipped on to the score sheet at Loftus.

De Sa was left desperately defending his decision to put the unloved Ndumiso Mabena on ahead of Zambia’s blockbusting Collins Mbesuma late on Friday night. I texted Roger just after half-time suggesting he should go with two up front, calling for my namesake to add firepower.

Instead, we got Mabena amid widespread twitter fury with De Sa explaining: “Mabena is in much better shape. Collins was off with Zambia’s national team so he got to our pre-season training later than the rest. He’s not a small guy; he carries a lot of wait.

“He could only play a half in our friendly in Lesotho. He was poor, he was out of touch – no disrespect to him but we tried again during training last week and we have to select on what we see there.

 “Mabena and Bacela were the two strikers we went with because of what we saw in training. I couldn’t pick Mbesuma simply because he scored 20 goals five years ago!”

On the result itself, De Sa lamented: “We created plenty of chances, I’m happy with that, but we are disappointed, we deserved a win after that second half.”

Baxter, on the other hand, was glowing: “Considering it’s so early in the season, I thought we were excellent at times. It was a decent performance, we worked hard.

“I was particularly pleased to see Morgan Gould play like that – he’s only about 75 percent fit. He's had two one hour spells in the practice games that we played. It was a good work-out with the Carling Cup to come next weekend.”

Yes. The Carling Cup. That bizarre, glitzy friendly where the fans decide. Could be interesting.

Depressed Pirates fans should consider this: they made the Congo champions look very ordinary and with Group A’s Egyptian giants Al Ahly and Zamalek playing at a neutral Red Sea resort on Wednesday, their Champions League campaign is far from over.

For celebrating Chiefs fans, perspective is needed. The Gauteng Cup – like he Carling Cup – is a mere pre-season detail.

These early warning shots are not decisive. A long season lies ahead. Wits and SuperSport United are building furiously. Let’s not judge anything – or anyone – just yet.

KNOWLEDGE MUSONA was carried off on a stretcher during his goal-scoring debut on Sunday but he confirms: "It was nothing, just cramp. I'll be fine - but I do need to work on my sharpnessl.

"The fans were awesome, it' great to be back."

"I thought we played really well for a pre-season game but we have plenty of work left to do/"

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Musona coming back to South Africa? Not to my Knowledge!

Thirst for Knowledge: But Musona will be staying in Germany

IF there's one man who can get South African football lovers all shook up, it's an educated guess on the transfer window destination of Knowledge Musona, the Zimbabwean sharp-shooter who leapt to prominence as a youngster with Kaizer Chiefs two years ago.

In this week of matriculation results, perhaps we should call this phenomenon a “Thirst for Knowledge” as the AmaKhosi, Buccaneers and Msandawana fans claim an imminent signing.

Currently plying his trade in Germany – where he is on loan with FC Ausburg after signing for 1899 Hoffenheim in 2011 – the social networks are abuzz with rumours of a return to the PSL today.

Sadly, I can report that there was no real Knowledge behind those whispers. I spoke to his agent Mike Makaab this morning and he assured me: “There’s no truth in those rumours at all. He’s a 22-year-old making his way in Europe. He will stay and fight for his future in Germany. There have been absolutely no talks about coming back to South Africa.

“Knowledge is fine in Germany, I don’t know where these reports came from.”

I think I can explain that. The uncertainty arose with the arrival of former Germany defender Stefan Reuter as the new boss at Ausberg last month.

The former Bayern, Juventus and Dortmund right back, who played 69 games for his nation, took over from Jürgen Rollmann at the struggling Bundesliga club during the current mid-winter break.

With Ausberg on a meagre nine points after 17 games, they are level with rock-bottom SpVgg Greuther Furthe, the newly-promoted club that nearly signed Mamelodi Sundowns’ Zimbabwean striker Nyasha Mushekwi at the start of the season.

Reuter, a pacy defender known as Turbo during his playing days, arrived promising a clear-out and Musona looked an obvious target.

According to http://www.bundesliga.com/en/liga/clubs/fc-augsburg-1907/kader.php Musona, after a debut goal in the 2-0 German Cup win over SV Wilhelmshaven, has gone 737 minutes without a  Bundesliga goal.

With Reuter signing South Korea striker Ji Dong-Won on loan from Sunderland,  Ausburg now have SIX strikers – with Musona curiously listed as a midfielder.

Makaab accepts Musona needs to show Reuter what he can do when the Bundesliga resumes on January 19. Fortunately for Knowledge, his national side narrowly failed to qualify for AFCON 2013 in South Africa – they lost in the play-offs to Angola, going out on away goals – and the latest news from Zimbabwe is that they may withdraw from 2014 World Cup qualifiers through a lack of cash.

With the nation still recovering from the AsiaGate match-fixing scandal, ZIFA vice-president Ndumiso Gumede is quoted today saying: "There is no money to pay for travel expenses and other incidentals. We have decided not to engage in any international matches unless the government chips in with financial assistance."

The association is currently R40m in debt with president Cuthbert Dube and a company called Mbada Diamonds keeping them afloat with cash hand-outs after an opening qualifying defeat on the road to Brazil against Guinea was followed by a draw with Mozambique. Zimbabwe are due to play Egypt in late March.

Musona’s Amakhosi days have become the stuff of legend. He joined the Chiefs from Aces in Zimbabwe having not played a Premier League game in the land of his birth.

As a teenager, he was a super-sub in 2009–10 season and won PSL Club Rookie of the Year award. The next season, he scored 15 goals in 28 league games to win the Lesley Manyathela Golden Boot.

Amid a general thirst for Knowledge, agent Makaab chose a five-year deal at 1899 Hoffenheim over Serbian giants FK Partizan and Scottish champions Celtic as the preferred European destination.

Hoffenheim paid R13m to Chiefs and Ausburg have, in turn, paid Hoffenheim R1m to take him on loan this season. Common sense tells us Knowledge will have to repay that fee with some goals in the second half of the season. Or he really could be back in the PSL next season.

Killer Mphela flies to Celtic for five-day trial while Musona deal "is still on"

WANTAWAY Sundowns striker Katlego “Killer” Mphela will fly to Scotland tonight for a five-day trial with Glasgow giants Celtic.

Mphela’s agent Glyn Binkin last night confirmed Sundowns had dismissed an offer from Israel’s Maccabi Haifa for the man who scored Bafana Bafana’s winner against Egypt two months ago.

But he told the Discovery Sports Centre on MetroFM: “It’s been quite a documented transfer situation but I’m delighted to say he’s got permission from Mamelodi Sundowns this afternoon.

“He’ll be flying out to Celtic tonight to take a five day trial in Glasgow. Sundowns promised to give him a chance, I’d like to thank them for giving him this opportunity.

“Maccabi Haifa? Katlego wanted to play football at the highest level, whatever that entailed. But in consulation with the club, Sundowns decided they’d prefer to pursue to Glasgow Celtic option and we’ll take him there.”

Asked if the Celtic offer would exceed the reported £17m made by Maccabi, Binkin said: “Maccabi made an offer and Sundowns turned it down. We respect that decision. When Mphela first played in Europe (with Strasbourg) at 17, he didn’t make it. That’s why he came back to South Africa. But now he has another opportunity.

“Sundowns wanted Mphela to stay but now, for whatever reason, they’ve let him go. I can’t speak for the club but I think it’s important for South African football that Mphela and players of his ilk go abroad.

“There’s been a lot of figures bandied about, Celtic have given Sundowns an idea of the fee they’re looking at. Now he has to prove he’s worth that amount.

“The Scottish Premier League is very tough and demanding, the big clubs are Celtic and Rangers, always at the top, always in Europe. For Mphela, it’s about competing at the top level, and we believe it’s the option which will be good for his future.”