National cups are something special for many teams and supporters. Today's match will decide whether it's Bloemfontein Celtic or AmaZulu that keep their silverware dream alive.
Both teams have had enough rest since their last competitive action. Let's hope for an energetic game!
Bloemfontein Celtic form and stats
Last season, Bloemfontein Celtic's Nedbank Cup journey ended in the quarter-finals.4 victories, 4 draws and 2 defeats. That’s what Bloemfontein Celtic have to build on here at Dr. Petrus Molemela Stadium in the Premier League.
A draw after 90 minutes last time out for Bloemfontein Celtic, who played 1-1 against Chippa United. That match was also played at this venue (Dr. Petrus Molemela Stadium). A Premier League defeat was the result before that one, 2-3 away at Bidvest Wits.
The hosts are modest favourites in this match, with the bookmakers estimating the chance of a home win at about 50% +- five percent. It's interesting to look at how Bloemfontein Celtic have performed under similar circumstances, so here are some numbers: When modest favourites like this (we found six games) they have won four times, drawn zero and lost two.
A decent goal production from Bloemfontein Celtic in their home games so far, with 19 goals from 10 league matches. Bloemfontein Celtic's goalkeeper has had to pick the ball out of their own net 11 times. For more goal stats, check the Statistics tab above.
AmaZulu form and stats
AmaZulu's mission in Nedbank Cup last season failed in the 16th finals.The hunting on away grounds haven’t been very fruitful for AmaZulu so far with only 9 points returning home. The records show 2-3-6 (win-draw-lose). AmaZulu seem to be suffering from homesickness with two consecutive losses away. Third time lucky?
B. Ntuli scored in AmaZulu's previous match, the home game against Polokwane City that ended 1-0. Preceding that game, the 0-1 loss visiting Orlando Pirates's place.
AmaZulu are the outsiders in this one, but not by much. Their performance in similar games (being the away team and moderate outsiders) is one win, two draws and five defeats. From a total of eight matches.
The attacking power of AmaZulu when travelling is not overwhelming with 7 goals scored from 11 league matches away. As opposed to that, AmaZulu have seen the ball go into their own net 11 times on the road.
Head 2 Head
As for the last ten games between these two teams, there's three Bloemfontein Celtic victories, four draws and three AmaZulu wins. four of these games ended with three goals or more, six matches with two goals or less.Top Goalscorers
  B. Ntuli 11 goals |   N. Mabena 5 goals |  S. Luthuli 5 goals |
Bloemfontein Celtic missing players
AmaZulu missing players
| Bloemfontein Celtic | AmaZulu | ||||||
| Total | Home | Statistics | Stat | Away | Total | ||
| 25 | 12 | Played | P | 14 | 25 | ||
| 9 | 6 | Won | W | 2 | 5 | ||
| 7 | 4 | Drew | D | 3 | 6 | ||
| 9 | 2 | Lost | L | 9 | 14 | ||
| 37 | 23 | Scored | S | 8 | 14 | ||
| 33 | 12 | Conceded | C | 20 | 34 | ||
| 88% | 92% | Over 0.5 | O 0.5 | 93% | 88% | ||
| 68% | 83% | Over 1.5 | O 1.5 | 43% | 56% | ||
| 56% | 58% | Over 2.5 | O 2.5 | 36% | 32% | ||
| 36% | 33% | Over 3.5 | O 3.5 | 21% | 12% | ||
| 16% | 17% | Over 4.5 | O 4.5 | 7% | 4% | ||
| 64% | 75% | BTTS | BTTS | 36% | 28% | ||
| 24% | 25% | Clean Sheets | C S | 14% | 24% | ||
| 24% | 8% | Failed to Score | F T | 57% | 60% | ||
| 4.4 | 5.2 | Corners for (avg) | C F | 5.3 | 5 | ||
| 6.1 | 6.2 | Corners against (avg) | C A | 5.2 | 4.8 | ||
| 1.3 | 1.1 | Yellow cards (avg) | Y C | 2.5 | 2.3 | ||
| 2 | 0 | Red cards | R C | 0 | 0 | ||
| 214 | 105 | Total Shots | T S | 128 | 237 | ||
| 86 | 44 | Shots on Target | S O | 31 | 64 | ||
| 38% | 43% | Goal Efficiency | G E | 23% | 20% | ||
| Total | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||||
| # | Team | MP | W | D | L | F | A | MP | W | D | L | F | A | MP | W | D | L | F | A | +/- | P |
| 1 | Kaizer Chiefs | 19 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 38 | 14 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 19 | 7 | 24 | 45 |
| 2 | Orlando Pirates | 20 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 34 | 25 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 9 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 16 | 9 | 36 |
| 3 | Mamelodi Sundowns | 18 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 24 | 14 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 13 | 9 | 10 | 35 |
| 4 | SuperSport United | 21 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 30 | 20 | 11 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 20 | 11 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 34 |
| 5 | Bidvest Wits | 15 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 21 | 12 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 9 | 30 |
| 6 | Maritzburg United | 20 | 6 | 9 | 5 | 16 | 16 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 27 |
| 7 | Golden Arrows | 20 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 18 | 24 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 9 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 15 | -6 | 27 |
| 8 | Highlands Park | 20 | 7 | 5 | 8 | 21 | 26 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 15 | -5 | 26 |
| 9 | Bloemfontein Celtic | 19 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 30 | 26 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 19 | 11 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 4 | 25 |
| 10 | Cape Town City | 21 | 5 | 9 | 7 | 26 | 29 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 19 | -3 | 24 |
| 11 | Stellenbosch | 21 | 6 | 6 | 9 | 20 | 26 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 14 | 16 | -6 | 24 |
| 12 | Chippa United | 21 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 14 | 20 | 11 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 14 | -6 | 22 |
| 13 | Baroka | 21 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 18 | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 6 | -6 | 20 |
| 14 | Black Leopards | 20 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 9 | 18 | -10 | 20 |
| 15 | AmaZulu | 21 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 24 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 11 | -12 | 20 |
| 16 | Polokwane City | 21 | 5 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 28 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 12 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 8 | 16 | -12 | 17 |