Maritzburg targeting Ajax scalp

Maritzburg United are at home this week welcoming Ajax Cape Town in an aim to salvage their Absa Premiership status on Wednesday night at Harry Gwala Stadium. Kick-off is at 7:30pm.

The struggling Team Of Choice is hoping to bag the full three points in their penultimate Absa Premiership tie following their 0-0 draw against Orlando Pirates last weekend.

Coach Ernst Middendorp is fully aware that the match is crucial for their PSL survival and will now have to ensure his charges are in fine form.

The bottom-placed side cannot afford to lose or drop points at this stage of the season as their future in the top flight division hangs by a thread.

Looking at their previous three league matches, they registered one win against Free State Stars, a draw against Eric Tinkler's side before losing to SuperSport United.

Anssi Jaakkola

They still remain rooted at the wrong end of the table with 21 points from 28 matches and a win will revive their hopes heading to the final match of the season.

Speaking after the match at Orlando Stadium, Middendorp said he accepted a point from their Buccaneers' clash.

"I personally can accept the point despite being so close to getting more. We did well in the end but didn't score," said Middendorp.

"We still have an opportunity against Ajax so we are going for it, with nothing to lose.

“Compliments to the players for the effort today. We have seen that there is a lot of fight, spirit and desire in the team. The frustrations are the same whether you fight for the title or fight relegation. We just have to look to the next game.

“This is nothing new. I've taken teams from the bottom up to safety. I like this challenge, working within these elements.”

Shifting focus to the Urban Warriors, Roger De Sa's men are also chasing a win at all costs to ensure they reach the top eight.

The Capetonians will have to go all out and ensure they qualify for the MTN8 Cup tournament and boost their chances of defending their trophy.

However, facing a team of United's calibre who are fighting for their lives presents a challenge for the visiting Ajax, especially meeting them in Maritzburg.

The Mother City side defeated the Team of Choice 3-1 in the first round, but this time around, it's going to be a different football game as both sides want the three points for different reasons.

In their previous three matches, Ajax suffered a disappointing 5-0 loss against Bloemfontein Celtic, drew 0-0 against league champions Mamelodi Sundowns as well as a 2-2 stalemate against relegation threatened Jomo Cosmos last Wednesday.

As they occupy the 10th spot with 34 points from two matches to go, De Sa will now push his team to fight for the full three points and make it two wins over United this season.

Goalkeeper Anssi Jaakkola says they must fix their errors as a team because that has led to loss of points and matches.

“Maybe our concentration isn’t where it should be because the players seem to be accepting these mistakes game after game,” said Jaakkola. “It’s costing us points and it looks like it is going to cost us the top eight. It is something that we need to fix.

“We still make too many mistakes as a team. We lose the ball too easily and when it comes to counter attacking, in those situations we are still too exposed and very vulnerable.

“These are things that we need to get rid of because it has been costing us games the entire season especially the ones we could have easily won.”