Benni McCarthy is quite happy and relieved with how things panned out for AmaZulu in Malawi on Saturday afternoon.
The Usuthu coach is happy after the Durban side defeated Malawian club Nyasa Big Bullets 3-1 in a CAF Champions League preliminary round second leg match at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe, Malawi.
McCarthy’s boys won 3-2 on aggregate after losing 1-0 in the first leg mrtch at their King’s Park home last weekend.
“I think myself and the whole of South Africa were very shocked that we lost at home. We never underestimated them, they are a good team,” McCarthy said referring to the first leg match.
“We had to outsmart them. I think we did that by playing two big strikers they couldn’t handle. I think the strategy nailed it down.”
The 43-year-old McCarthy has insisted that winning the match was expected as he believes that there was no way Usuthu would have lost to Bullets twice.
“The result was expected. I didn’t think that we would make it so difficult and complicate it by ourselves by not winning away,” McCarthy remarked.
“Not winning at home and having to travel to Malawi and then be under pressure. Almost like fighting for your life in that kind of a situation. I’m just very happy for the players that they were able to overturn the deficit. They showed great maturity.”
Usuthu are going to face former African champions TP Mazembe from the Democratic Republic of Congo next month.
