Benni McCarthy blames ‘the ghosts of King Zwelithini’ for shock defeat

AmaZulu coach Benni McCarthy believes “the ghosts of King Zwelithini” came back to haunt Usuthu on Tuesday.

His side were on a record run of 16 unbeaten matches in the DStv Premiership before crashing to a 1-0 defeat against Baroka FC.

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AmaZulu have turned Kings Park into a formidable fortress this season, but were forced to return to their previous home ground, the King Zwelithini Stadium.

A venue where AmaZulu were a shadow of the side they are today. Where they were relegation candidates last season, struggling to get any points at home.

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McCarthy blamed the venue change for his side’s loss.

“I think psychologically moving the game away from Kings Park affected the team a little bit because obviously this used to be the clubs home ground but this season we have played every game at Kings Park. We became quite accustomed to the stadium and the pitch“ he stated after the game.

The Usuthu coach believes this gave Bakgakga an opening to win today.

“We were very familiar with everything. We have got some brilliant results there and then you have your home game moved to another stadium where you haven’t played all season. It gives the opposition an opening to get in, but today the opposition team was very physical.” McCarthy explained.

McCarthy’s misery compounded as AmaZulu title hopes dashed

The loss has ensured that Mamelodi Sundowns now only need one win in their remaining four matches to secure a successful title defence.

AmaZulu now sit on 50 points with three games remaining, meaning they can finish on a maximum of 59 points.

The Brazilians already have 57 points, meaning three points will be enough for Bafana baStyle to secure the 2020/21 DStv Premiership title.

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The race for second spot and CAF Champions League qualification has now been tightened by this shock defeat.

Luckily, for AmaZulu though, Orlando Pirates also failed to win after being held to a 0-0 draw against Stellenbosch FC at the Danie Craven Stadium.

Although, that is one point closer than they were to Usuthu at the start of the day.