Kenny Niemach insist Nurkovic’s absence will affect Kaizer Chiefs when they play Sundowns
Kenny Niemach who has played for Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns has insisted playing without Samir Nurkovic will definitely put Ernst Middendorp’s side at a disadvantage against the defending champions Downs.
The Serbian will miss today’s potential Absa Premiership title decider after receiving his fourth booking against Stellenbosch FC on Sunday.
Amakhosi are still in the driving seat as far as the race for the league title is concerned as they sit on 53 points compared to Sundowns’ 50, with a superior goal difference.
Nurkovic’s absence will be felt by Chiefs against a team like Sundowns, says Niemach, who himself was not dissimilar to the Serbian striker in his playing days.
“Look so far I think they’ve started to build their game around him because he’s always the one that’s a dangerman,” Niemach tells KickOff.com.
“He’s creating all the problems for the opposition, he’s always the one who seems to have a golden touch. I mean Khama Billiat has now fallen out of favour because of this boy you see. People might not see that, but that’s the truth.
“So I don’t know how Sundowns are going to go into the game, how he’s going to set out his stall [Pitso Mosimane]. But it is an advantage to Sundowns, because you know this guy is a finisher. You’ve got to give him his dues.
“But not only that, he’s got a bit of a nuisance value about him as well. He’s not the type who’s lazy, he’s the type that gets among defenders and goes shoulder to shoulder with defenders you know.
“So without him the dynamic of the game might be different. The way Chiefs play might be different because the whole thing has been focused around him quite a bit.
“I see it as an opportunity for Sundowns to close the gap. And then we can have a nice photo-finish which we haven’t seen in many, many years. It will be nice for the league, nice for the game of football in South Africa.
“Look, at the beginning of the season I said I like the work that was done at Kaizer Chiefs, they made critical changes that has brought them success. Most importantly they are able to score goals.
“Sundowns on the other hand, sometimes they seem to have a lapse in concentration. Not that they are not playing good football, but they are not always efficient as you would like to see them.
“I just hope that they pitch up in their next game against Kaizer Chiefs and I would like to see them beat them in that game. I fancy Pitso to close the gap against Kaizer Chiefs.”
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