Mamelodi Sundowns will aim to solidify their position atop the Betway Premiership standings when they host their fierce rivals, Orlando Pirates, in a monumental clash at Loftus Versfeld Stadium this weekend.
This will be the third meeting between the two sides this season, following their two-legged MTN8 semi-final encounter, which the Sea Robbers edged in their favour.
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The question now is whether the Brazilians can avenge that defeat or if Pirates will once again come out on top.
Mamelodi Sundowns
Fresh from their dominant back-to-back victories over Remo Stars of Nigeria, where they cruised to the group stages of the CAF Champions League following a 7-1 aggregate score, the Brazilians will now shift their focus towards defending their league trophy.
They are currently sitting at the top of the standings with 21 points after securing six victories, three draws, and one loss in their opening 10 games, separated by one point from second-place Sekhukhune, while Pirates is two points behind them in the third position.
Miguel Cardoso rested several key players in their second leg clash as they already had one foot in the door, having won the first leg 5-1.
Ronwen Williams was not part of the matchday squad, while Teboho Mokoena and in-form striker Peter Shalule played 58 minutes and made way for Bathusi Aubaas and Lebo Mothiba.
They will be aiming to take advantage of Pirates’ lack of rest as the Buccaneers are in action on Tuesday against Magesi FC in a Carling Knockout Cup quarterfinal match.
The Pretoria-based team has a score to settle as they were eliminated by Pirates in the MTN8 semifinal double-header, and the visitors went on to make history by lifting their fourth #WafaWafa trophy in succession.
Bafana Bafana forward Iqraam Rayners has missed the last three games as he is sidelined with an injury. Themba Zwane, Malibongwe Khoza, Zuko Mdunyelwa and Mothobi Mvala are also in the recovery room and may be excluded from this tie.
Orlando Pirates
The Soweto giants turned things around after opening their 2025/26 league campaign with back-to-back losses and are enjoying a six-match winning run.
They are still reeling from their CAF elimination and are expected to put in extra effort to win the league as consolation, but it will not be easy, as Downs has turned it into their bread and butter, having won it for the past eight seasons in succession.
Pirates put on a valiant effort to recover from their 3-0 loss in the first leg. They managed to score the three goals in the second leg, but were eliminated on penalties after Deon Hotto and Yanela Mbuthuma missed.
Abdeslam Ouaddou has an important match against Magesi on Wednesday before he can begin preparations for this mammoth clash.
It remains to be seen whether or not fatigue will catch up with his players after experiencing fixture congestion as they have been partaking in three competitions at the same time.
Masindi Nemtanjela, Patrick Maswanganyi and Oswin Appollis were impressive and are expected to continue with their brilliance in the midfield and building attacks.
The likes of Relebohile Mofokeng, Thapelo Xoki, Makhehleni Makhaula and Deano van Rooyen are expected to miss out on this match as they are still dealing with injuries.