Bartlett: Every game is important

Cape Town - University of Pretoria coach Shaun Bartlett insists every game is vital for his team to keep the momentum going in their bid to avoid relegation this season.

AmaTuks are faced with a tough battle for survival in the Premiership after a dismal 2015/16 campaign. The Pretoria side are sitting 15 in the league standings, having only managed to collect 17 points from 23 games played so far.

However, Barlett's men take on SuperSport United in the Nedbank Cup last-16 on Tuesday and the former Kaizer Chiefs striker emphasised the importance of winning the Tshwane derby to keep the confidence levels in the team high.

"I know a lot of people are saying the league is more important, but I make every game a priority," said Bartlett.

"To lose this game can also be demoralising and we do not want that going into a massive game against Maritzburg United. We are going to put out a strong team that can get a win, so that we can keep the confidence going.

"We had a setback in our last game against Ajax, but we have the players who can bounce back and get a good result. We can surprise a few people."

Bartlett, who played under Matsatsantsa coach Stuart Baxter when he was with Bafana Bafana in 2005, is also confident that his side will come back with a victory from the match.

"Stuart is a coach who goes to the finer details as far as preparing his team is concerned. He has a strong emphasis on not conceding," said Bartlett.

"He will also utilise the strong points in his team, which I think is the wingers and the strikers. So we just have to make sure we are patient in our approach and try expose them in the weaknesses that they do possess.

"It's a derby and we have to play with all the pride that we have."