Cape Town - Mamelodi Sundowns and SuperSport United will battle in the second Telkom Knockout semi-final, set to be played at Lucas Moripe Stadium.
Sundowns booked their place in the semi-finals thanks to a 6-1 thrashing of Free State Stars in the quarterfinals - the biggest win of the TKO in 2015. They also beat Chippa United 2-0 in the last 16, as they look to claim a first League Cup crown since 1999.
SuperSport, the defending Telkom Knockout champions, have ousted Polokwane (2-1) and Golden Arrows (3-1) in the last 16 and quarter-finals respectively. They remain on course to defend their title, but will now face the challenge of travelling to their arch Tshwane rivals.
The teams have clashed in 11 previous cup matches. ‘Downs have six wins to their name, while United have five – there have been no draws.
The teams’ last cup meeting was also a Telkom Knockout semi-final, back in 2012. The Brazilians edged the game 1-0 thanks to a goal from Eleazar Rodgers. Earlier in the same year, Matsatsantsa had beaten ‘Downs 2-0 in the final of the Nedbank Cup, with Thabo September and Kermit Erasmus scoring the goals.
In all, the teams have clashed in 59 league and cup matches. Sundowns have 29 wins compared to 19 for United, while 11 matches have been drawn.
This TKO semi-final will be the teams’ first match against each other this season. Last term, the Brazilians claimed a league ‘double’ over their rivals by winning 3-1 at home and 2-1 away.
The teams were both in league action on Wednesday evening: Sundowns claimed a hard-fought 1-0 away win over Chippa United to move to the top of the log, while United remain marooned in the bottom half of the standings after being held 1-1 at home by Bloemfontein Celtic.
Kick-off is at 20:15 on Saturday, November 7.