Chiefs and SuperSport meet this Saturday evening in the first of two games that they will play over seven days – the first being a Nedbank Cup quarter-final at FNB Stadium and the second a league match at Mbombela Stadium a week later.
Matsatsantsa have lost all of their last three in the league and taken just two points from the 15 that have been available over the last five league games, damaging their title aspirations in the process.
“You have to be very careful with a team that is not getting results yet they know what is expected of them and just how dangerous they can be,” says Komphela.
“SuperSport is no different, just a hiccup does not make them a frustrated side, not really. With regards to Stuart [Baxter], he is very experienced and has shown in the past. The two matches that he played against Sundowns were not the same and that is a sign of a man who thinks, you learn from your previous experience and in football you always learn and the previous match is not the same as the match that you will play.
"If he has to think about the previous match that he lost and play the way they did last night and then there is a possibility he might have a different way of seeing how the match is going to be on Saturday which obviously says to you don’t depend on his past because he is going to come with a different way of seeing things and thinking so you have to think even further.
“But we respect the quality that they have, his thinking capabilities because sometimes football is only technical and tactical, it is more mental. There are certain calibre of people who thrive on challenges, the more challenges you throw at them the sharper they get and Stuart is no different from that kind of group. So you have to stay switched on."
While Chiefs have been on a fine run that has kept alive Komphela’s chase for their first title he maintains that their form shouldn't be considered as a factor.
“The biggest challenge with us is to forget the run we have had because it counts for nothing. The biggest thing is to think about the game on Saturday. The past won’t take you into the next round of the Nedbank so just focus on the match and play the game and as the whistle starts don’t start thinking about minute 95 because you will have the problem of missing out a lot in between. So play the match as is so you have to stay on current for them,” he notes.
