Cape Town City banking on win against Orlando Pirates for a lift

The Citizens are yet to register a victory in 2024 and Tinkler admitted this week he was concerned they could miss out on a top-eight finish in the DStv Premiership. 

He believes City have not been as out of sorts as the results suggest and is eager to prove that against the Buccaneers. 

"We've had one game since the turn of the year that I thought, 'We've got a problem here,' which was in the Royal AM game, but I don't think I can really say we've had issues as a squad for the rest of the games," said Tinkler.

"So I think the camaraderie, unity, and belief in the technical staff is all still there. Now, like I said, the quality has to improve – we can't be creating that many chances and not capitalising on it."

Tinkler continues to hold the opinion that his approach to matches is not the main reason for their slump because it suits the current squad at his disposal. 

The City coach just wants to see them start picking up points. 

"One thing I'm not a huge fan of, and I did it in the first season when I was here, where I played with two systems and I would chop and change," he added.

"But I think that doesn't work entirely, especially with the recruitment that you are doing, when you're [reflecting], 'Oh, the result wasn't good. Let's go to the back-four; oh, the result wasn't good, let's go to a back-five.'"

READ: Tinkler worried Cape Town City could miss top eight target