On Saturday, Gallants returned to winning ways in the PSL with a stunning 2-0 victory over the highly favoured Orlando Pirates at the Toyota Stadium. 

Despite the win, they remain uncomfortably close to the relegation zone, making it crucial to build on their performance against the Buccaneers by securing another three points.

Andre de Jong (right). Photo: Morgan Piek

Gallants suffered a few injury setbacks against the Sea Robbers, the most significant being their Zimbabwean international goalkeeper, Washington Arubi, who sustained a fractured finger. The defender Lebogang Mabotja in turn sustained a neck injury after colliding with the replacement goalkeeper, Kagiso Mlambo, shortly after Arubi left the field.

The last time Gallants faced Stellies was in November last year when they claimed a 1-0 victory in the quarter-finals of the Carling Knockout Cup at the Slaughterhouse.

New Gallants coach Abdes Ouaddou emphasised the need for his team to be at their best to secure another win but acknowledged the challenge ahead.

“We’ll see, you know, Stellenbosch is a very good team as well,” said the former Moroccan international captain.

“They have very quick players like Devin Titus and André de Jong, who are very clever. We’ll study them with my staff and see what we can do. We do have a lot of injuries, but the most important thing is to pick up points. I’m not in a position to overthink solutions – the mission is very tough.

Devin Titus (left) and Lebogang Mabotja (right). Photo: Morgan Piek

“We need to take points, so we will put together the best organisation and philosophy to do that.”

Tuesday night’s game at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium kicks off at 19:30. At the same time, Kaizer Chiefs will take on Clinton Larsen’s Magesi FC at Soccer City in Soweto.

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek mvh