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Johannesburg - Kaizer Chiefs' coach Vladimir Vermezovic is confident of keeping Amakhosi’s Absa Premiership hopes alive when they host AmaZulu in Wednesday’s Premiership clash at the FNB Stadium.
The Serbian-born coach said AmaZulu would provide Chiefs with the opportunity to bounce back after their 1-0 away loss to another title chasing side, Ajax Cape Town, over the weekend.
"That is the beauty of soccer. You get a chance immediately to rectify matters after a loss and we aim to do just that, but I expect AmaZulu to make things tough for us," he said.
AmaZulu slumped to 13th place in the 16-team Premiership after losing 2-1 to Golden Arrows in a Durban derby at the weekend.
Chiefs are in third position on 26 points, four points behind leaders Mamelodi Sundowns.
"While it is too early to make any predictions for the league title, as we still have 48 points to play for, Chiefs are still alive," said Vemezovic.
"There is a lot of room for improvement. I expect us to play better than we did against Ajax and collect three points," he said.
He wanted his players to stick to his game plan against AmaZulu.
"This league is competitive with any side being able to beat another on a given day. We have a system and if we play to it we will get three points."
Vermezovic is minus his star winger Siphiwe Tshabalala, who left on Monday night for a trial with English Championship side Nottingham Forest.
He is not worried, though, and has two replacements on the left wing for Shabba in the form of Abia Nale and Siyabulela Songwiqi.
"I had plans in place at the start of the season to replace Tshabalala," he said.
"We thought that after the World Cup last July he might be moving overseas, so I had a plan in place where I have two players Nale and Songwiqi to fall back on."
Amakhosi skipper Jimmy Tau said his players were aware of the "banana skin" Usuthu represented.
"I do not think AmaZulu are a small team, but we learnt lessons from Ajax and we will redeem ourselves on Wednesday."
Chiefs' hard-tackling Bafana Bafana midfielder Reneilwe Letsholonyane is gearing up for a tough battle.
"We will bounce back after losing to Ajax as Chiefs are not in habit of losing two games in a row," he said.
Sundowns face a tricky trip to the Seisa Ramabodu Stadium where they face high-riding Bloemfontein Celtic.
Celtic moved to fifth spot on 24 points after edging out struggling Mpumalanga Black Aces 1-0 in Nelspruit at the weekend.
Arrows host another title-chasing side in the form of Orlando Pirates at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium, while champions SuperSport United, who ended their slump with a 1-0 away win over Vasco da Gama on Friday night, play Free State Stars at Atterdigeville’s Lucas Moripe Stadium.
Vasco play Santos in a Cape Town derby at the Athlone Stadium, while second placed Ajax, with 27 points, face relegation-threatened Maritzburg United at the Harry Gwala stadium.
They will be keen to collect three points and hope Sundowns slip up against Celtic.
Moroka Swallows and Aces meet in a relegation battle at Dobsonville.
