THE Telkom Knockout dress rehearsal between Mamelodi Sundowns and Bloemfontein Celtic last weekend didn't even come close to the teaser everyone expected ahead of tomorrow night's cup final.
With key players rested to avoid injuries or suspensions, the anticipation for the Premier League clash at Moses Mabhida stadium was watered down or heightened - depending on how you look at it.
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Fans are in for some key battles on the pitch. Look out for:
Alje Schut vs Lennox Bacela
Schut started for Downs in the league match to keep it tight at the back, but Bacela came off the bench in the second half. The striker sparked some life into the Celtic attack and came close to scoring. Could be a long night for Schut if Bacela has his scoring boots on.
Teko Modise vs John Arwuah
A lot has already been said about Modise's desperation to win a cup final after 11 years in top-flight football. The skipper will want to prove he can lead his charges. However, Arwuah can easily eliminate him if he ruffles him up in the opening stages of this encounter.
Punch Masenamela vs Joel Mogorosi
Masenamela has a score to settle. The burly Mogorosi made a mockery of the leftback's defending when the two faced off in a World Cup qualifier between Bafana and Botswana in June.
Masenamela was substituted as a result, so he will want to silence Mogorosi in a game of this magnitude. Mogorosi is often a super-sub for Celtic, but that hasn't stopped him from making an impact when he comes on.
Eleazar Rodgers vs Thabo Nthete
Celtic skipper Nthete will have to take care of Downs' leading scorer in this tournament. Sundowns haven't quite played to Rodgers' strengths much - playing the ball in the air - but, it being a cup final, they might try all avenues to end their trophy drought. Nthete has proven aerial defensive ability to halt this on the night.
A technical glitch at Computicket outlets yesterday prevented thousands of fans from buying tickets for tomorrow's final.
PSL head of Q-Innovation Dominic Ntsele said last night the anticipated 20000 tickets could not be sold "because of a system error".
The number of tickets that were sold before yesterday stood at 19000, according to Ntsele. He said their target was 51000. Ntsele is confident the target will be reached despite yesterday's hitch.
"It was really a bad day in terms of ticket sales but we are happy that the system is now up and running," he said. - Additional reporting by Mcelwa Nchabeleng
Source : sportive.co.za
Tags : Sundowns, Celtics,sundowns vs celtics, telkom knockout final,sele sele
