AmaZulu beat Royal AM 1-0 in the Nedbank Cup at the King Zwelithini Stadium on Thursday evening. The result sees Usuthu go into the second round of the competition after their very first cup meeting against Thwili Twala.Going into the match, it was clear that AmaZulu head coach Pablo Franco Martin wanted more strength at the back as he went for a defensive back five. Royal AM on the other hand, went for a more attacking formation and opted for a front three.
The first half of the match produced no goals, however both sides had their fair share of creating chances. Riaan Hanamub was instrumental as a full-back on the wing and put in a few crosses into AmaZulu’s box, but nothing came from his efforts.
One of Hanamub’s crosses forced a corner which he took in AmaZulu’s most promising attack but the ball was cleared by Augustine Chidi Kwem off the line, leaving goalkeeper Olwethu Mzimela in no man’s land 25 minutes into the game.
Royal AM’s Mxolisi Macuphu came close to scoring not too long afterwards but his shot was too weak after good defensive work from Ramahlwe Mphahlele. On the other end, Ben Motshwari took a shot from outside the box which was dipping and forced a save from Hugo Nyame.
The end of the half left both sides with plenty to reflect on going into the break. Thwili Twala had no shots on target despite having the majority of ball possession.
The same trend continued in the second half but both teams went in with more determination. In the 58th minute, Wayde Jooste’s cross was seemingly heading into the goal as Nyame was off his line — but the ball went over to safety.
Shortly after coming on as a substitute, Sabelo Sithole brought down Tshepang Moremi just outside the box and was booked, however Usuthu players complained to the referee arguing that they were denied a goal scoring opportunity and it should’ve been a red card.
The free kick was subsequently taken by Hanamub but went straight into the wall and Royal AM countered immediately but the effort was off target.
In the 84th minute a break from AmaZulu came and Hendrick Ekstein was clear on goal, however, he tried to play the ball to a teammate and the chance was gone. With five minutes to go, Ekstein showed more confidence and went for the strike, producing the first and only goal of the match.
