AmaZulu head into Durban derby in fine form

by Graeme Jackson

Friday Feb 02, 2018. 08:54

AmaZulu will look to keep up their good form in the Absa Premiership when they host Golden Arrows for a Durban derby at King Zwelithini Stadium on 3 February 2018, kick-off at 20h15.

AmaZulu extended their unbeaten run to four matches with a 1-0 win at SuperSport United on January 31. The Durban side has claimed eight points from the last 12 up for grabs and have kept four successive clean sheets in the process.

Usuthu have claimed just 14 points from 10 home matches this season, though their last two games as hosts have produced a win over SuperSport and a goalless draw with Bloemfontein Celtic.

Arrows played to their 11th draw of the season - and a second in succession - after they were held 2-2 at home by Baroka FC on January 28. The Durban side has won just one of their last 14 league matches, picking up 12 points from a possible 42 in the sequence.

Abafana Bes’thende have claimed just 11 points from 10 away matches this season and they haven’t won on the road since beating Platinum Stars 1-0 back in September last year.

In head-to-head stats, Arrows and AmaZulu have met in 21 league matches since 2001/02. Both Abafana Bes’thende and Usuthu have claimed nine wins each, while three matches have been drawn. The team clad in green and white has recorded four wins, three draws and three defeats from 10 matches as hosts in this rivalry.

When the teams met earlier this season, Arrows claimed an emphatic 4-1 home victory thanks to goals from Lerato Lamola, Siphelele Magubane, Knox Mutizwa and Kuda Mahachi. It was their first win over AmaZulu in the league since the second half of the 2010/11 season.

AmaZulu’s line-up from their 1-0 win over SuperSport on January 31: S. Mbatha, M. Gumede, Mabiliso, P. Gumede (Nyongo 37’), Ouro-Akoriko, S. Dlamini, Morton, Mnguni, Karuru, Nomvethe (Darpoh 61’), Khenyeza (Abraw 69’).

Arrows’ line-up from their 2-2 draw with Baroka on January 28: Gumede, Mzava, Mngwengwe, Buthelezi, Nonyane, Venter (Magubane 81'), Zuke, Shongwe, Ndwandwe (Chideu 88'), Mahachi (Lamola 46'), Mutizwa.