Johannesburg - Benni McCarthy is hoping a wounded Orlando Pirates bounce back in Saturday's Soweto derby with Kaizer Chiefs.
The Sea Robbers, who will face Amakhosi at FNB Stadium, are smarting from a 3-0 defeat against struggling Santos in Cape Town on Wednesday.
McCarthy was well policed by the likes of Nasief Morris and Wayne Arendse at Athlone Stadium, and the Hanover Park-born striker concedes it was a difficult return to his home city.
"If they (referring to Santos) continue playing the way they did, I think they can easily make it the top five," he told Pirates' official website.
"They did not give us any space, especially their defenders who were extremely solid and made life tough for us.
"For us it is all back to the drawing board to prepare for the game against Kaizer Chiefs. We have to forget about the loss and focus on the next match.
"We have another chance on Saturday and hopefully things will work out for us," concluded Bafana Bafana's record scorer.