You know by now how England played badly against France, Bafana Bafana suffered a painful defeat in the Cape Town Mandela Challenge to the USA and Zimbabwe Warriors made easy meat the Mozambique under caretaker coach, Madinda Ndlovu.
There was greater jubilation elsewhere with the victory of Birmingham City over Chelsea at the weekend, when Lee Bowyer beat Petr Cech to condemn the champions to a 3rd successive defeat. It was a result welcomed by both Manchester United and sobbing Arsenal. The Gunners were gunned down by Tottenham Spurs at the Emirates who came from 2 goals down and winning 3-2. Manchester City played the way they should for the first time when they dispatched Fulham by 4 goals to 1. Their midfield looked like a Barclays Premier League outfit for once. Consistency will be key in the league going forward. There is no doubt that the English teams will dominate the Champions League, but the home form have suddenly made the league an astonishing and enterprising affair.
There were contrasting victories of both Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates in the Telkom Knockout Cup. Chiefs huffed and puffed against Santos until an extra time blunder by the goalkeeper handed Knowledge Musona his easiest goal ever. This booked Amakhosi a date with the Bucs in what many will call the 'dream final'. The 2 teams have met in the Telkom Charity final with Chiefs winning. In the MTN-8, Pirates beat Chiefs. Only a few days back, Chiefs hammered Pirates by a 3-1 goal margin in the ABSA Premier League.
Pirates were the benefactor of a controversial decision to change Maritzburg United's home ground on the grounds that there were safety concerns at the Harry Gwala Stadium. The Sea Robbers waltzed to a 3-0 victory and United feel robbed by the Happy People because they had to play at Chatsworth Stadium for their home match. Ironically, the 2 teams meet again this week at the Harry Gwala venue and the safety concerns are gone.
Highlanders were ruthless against neighbours, Bantu Rovers. Bosso posted their 8th league win in a row to condemn Tshintsha Guluva to certain relegation. Zephania Ngodzo was the toast of the moment with a goal of class. The excellent form of players will benefit the team in the long run as they will attract sponsorship and crowds, especially next season. Some players may even get contracts in better paying leagues.
While Tshilamoya are enjoying a new lease of life under Mkhuphali Masuku, they will not be smelling a Cup final anytime soon. They have been kicked out of the BancABC Cup final. The Bulawayo team were thrown out for the 2nd time after the initial ruling by a Dan Moyo arbitration ad-hoc committee ruled in favour of Dynamos.
Bosso wasted time and resources seeking a court order which stalled the tournament and asked ZIFA to resolve the matter. Dembare sent all and sundry from pillar to post including negotiating to play Bosso in Harare. Eventually, nothing happened, except time and money wasted as nothing was honoured by anybody.
Finally, Barcelona put some team 8-0 to the sword and Real Madrid maintained their La Liga league with a 5-1 drubbing of another. Both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were on hat-tricks. There is no question of a Mourinho versus Guardiola, but, who is the king of Spanish football between Barca and Real? Does Ronaldo compare to Messi or Messi to Ronaldo?
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