Durban — AmaZulu survived a late surge to draw 0-0 on the day and 1-1 on aggregate with Kaizer Chiefs and qualified for their first ever MTN8 final at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Usuthu advanced to the 2022 MTN8 final on the away goals rule, their solitary goal coming through Gabadinho Mhango in the first leg.
The visiting Amakhosi knew they had to score to give themselves any chance of advancing to the final and therefore the inclusion of top-scorer Caleb Bimenyimana into the starting XI made sense.
Usuthu Coach Romain Folz had mentioned prior to this encounter their awareness of the kind of mind games the opposition would try to play and therefore opted to go on the offensive himself with Gabadinho Mhango and Augustine Kwem leading his attack.
AmaZulu's crucial away goal weighed heavily on the shoulders of the Chiefs players and it showed from onset, their willingness to go forward and attack accompanied by some jittery behaviour at the back.
Brandon Pieterson, who returned in goal for Amakhosi almost gifted AmaZulu the opener, his poor clearance ending up on the feet of George Maluleka in the 15th minute.
The experienced midfielder did well to compose himself and set up Siphesihle Maduna, who then fired just wide with Pieterson scrambling.
AmaZulu grew into the game and began to win more of the 50/50 challenges and Maluleka began to assert himself more in midfield, giving Usuthu a chance at controlling possession for larger periods of the game.
Chiefs coach Arthur Zwane would've been worried heading into half-time break, his side showing very little in the final third and any progression hampered by an incredibly sloppy habit of giving the ball away by his most trusted men.
Needing an immediate solution, Zwane threw on the streetwise expertise of Khama Billiat in place of Bimenyimana, who pulled up with an injury halfway through the second stanza.
The 32-year-old impact was instant and his usual partner in crime Keagan Dolly started to get on the ball more, looking to find those half spaces and tight areas but they were met with a well-drilled Usuthu defensive line.
The experience and guile of some of the Usuthu players came to the fore as they began to slow the game down when in possession and also initiated a lot of stoppages and breakdowns in play, denying Chiefs the chance to build momentum.
In the end Romain Folz's men proved to be the better group over two legs, setting up an interesting MTN8 final showdown with Pirates.
IOL Sport