The big match is almost upon us, as fans of Kaizer Chiefs approach the Carling Black Label Knockout Cup quarterfinal against Mamelodi Sundowns with a sense of optimism. Everything is in place for a potentially epic encounter.

After wrapping up preparation at the final training session before the match, Amakhosi head coach, Nasreddine Nabi spoke exclusively to www.kaizerchiefs.com:

On the state of the squad:
The camp is in good spirits. We didn’t pick up any new injuries against Magesi in midweek. The mood is positive; everyone is looking forward to game.

On limited time to prepare:
It is true that the lack of preparation time is a challenge. Also, switching between two competitions. We played Magesi in a league game and now it’s a quarterfinal knockout game. We rely a lot on our medical team and our fitness coach, who did incredible work in pre-season to prepare the players for these types of back-to-back games. As the technical staff, we focus on the play/recovery cycle. There isn’t enough time to do tactical drills. That’s why our strength and conditioning department is so important. They keep us going from game to game.

On the opposition:
We all know that Mamelodi Sundowns is a champion club and we anticipate they will compete hard tomorrow in order to go through. That is the same for us. We are Kaizer Chiefs. We will do everything in our power to win in front of our amazing fans. The last time we played them we were so close to getting a good result. It was a very entertaining game; tough, technical and exciting. Both teams have very good players and both coaches have their strategies, so I am expecting a great game. We are ready for anything and everything.

The sold-out Carling Black Label Knockout quarterfinal kicks off at 18:00 on Saturday, 2 November at FNB stadium.