Cape Town City will be hoping to return to winning ways when they visit Orlando Pirates in their fifth Absa Premiership encounter at FNB Stadium on Tuesday night.

Kick-off is at 7:30pm.

The Citizens are fresh from a two-match unbeaten run in the league, but their bright start came to a halt when they lost 2-0 to Kaizer Chiefs last Wednesday.

Apart from their league loss, coach Benni McCarthy's men have had a great start in all competitions as they managed to reach the MTN8 final.

They beat Polokwane City and Bidvest Wits twice in the semifinals as well as two league wins over Platinum Stars and the Clever Boys.

However, meeting his former employers away from home, McCarthy is aware that this will not be an easy affair as both sides want the full three points.

On the other hand, the Buccaneers are yet to taste defeat in their league campaign, and at home they will be a tough customer.

Coach Milutin Sredojevic has led Pirates to two wins in the league and as many draws. Their mission is to continue to collect points and keep their unbeaten run intact.

Fresh from a win over Ajax Cape Town and a 1-1 draw against Maritzburg United, the Soweto giants are confident of claiming a victory in Soweto.

Previous starting XI

Orlando Pirates v Maritzburg United: Sandilands, Mobara, Jele, Nyauza, Maela, Dube, Matlaba, Nyatama, Morrison, Qalinge, Gabuza

Cape Town City v Kaizer Chiefs: Stephens, Edmilson, Johannes, Gumede, Kobola, Nodada, Matsi, Modise, Lakay, Patosi, Majoro

Head-to- Head

ALL LEAGUE RESULTS

Season Result Scorers

2016/17 Pirates 0-0 CTC

2016/17 CTC 2-2 Pirates Putsche, Manyama, Wome, Norodien

LEAGUE RECORD (since 2016/17)

Home

P W D L GF GA

Pirates 1 0 1 0 0 0

CTC 1 0 1 0 2 2

Away

P W D L GF GA

Pirates 1 0 1 0 2 2

CTC 1 0 1 0 0 0

Total

P W D L GF GA

Pirates 2 0 2 0 2 2

CTC 2 0 2 0 2 2

What the teams are saying:

Orlando Pirates coach Milutin Sredojevic:

“Look, this wasn’t an easy match by any means (against Maritzburg). It’s no surprise United are where they are on the log table,” said Sredojevic after a draw against United.

“Although I am happy with our general performance I still believe there are some areas we need to improve on.

“Obviously with our next match coming up so soon there’s little you can do except try and regenerate and hope that the players are fresh for yet another challenge against (Cape Town) City.”

Cape Town City coach Benni McCarthy:

"Football is football. Sometimes you win some, sometime you lose some," McCarthy told SuperSport TV after their loss to Chiefs.

“I made change, I felt the boys needed a shift. I didn't pay off. As a coach, you hold hand up and back to the drawing board now. We can't be sulking and we got another tough game against (Orlando) Pirates."

Key players for Orlando Pirates:

Wayne Sandilands:

The Bafana Bafana keeper has claimed the No 1 jersey at Pirates and will want to keep a clean sheet as he has conceded only once. Although they seem to be finding combinations at the back, he will be key as they want to defeat the Citizens.

Thabo Qalinge:

The winger has done well for Pirates since the start of the season and has been a regular. His mission is to keep doing well and will continue after winning the Man of the Match Award against Maritzburg.

Key players for Cape Town City:

Lehlohonolo Majoro:

'Major' scored vital goals for the Soweto giants in his days at Mayfair, but now features for his current employers aiming to beat their hosts. His form has been revived under McCarthy and he will want to continue scoring for the Mother City side.

Tshepo Gumede:

The club's central defender, Gumede is one of the former Pirates players in the City squad. He will be tasked with closing down the likes of Qalinge and Thamsanqa Gabuza, whom he is familiar with.