Kaizer Chiefs’ interim coach Patrick Mabedi says it was important for Amakhosi to ‘bounce back’ and beat Maritzburg United 2-0 at the FNB Stadium on Saturday.

The Glamour Boys moved up to third place on the Absa Premiership standings with 45 points after goals in either half from Gustavo Paez and Dumisani Zuma saw Amakhosi claim maximum points against the Team of Choice.

Mabedi says he was happy to see his side show their mental capacity and execute his game plan to claim his first win since taking over the helm at Chiefs.

‘It’s important that we bounced back,’ Mabedi told his club’s official website.

‘We have been through difficult times, but everything went according to our plans today – a big thank you to the players for executing the plan.

‘You have to be mentally strong. However, when I was still playing and captaining the club, you have to be mentally strong as well. So I was prepared.’

The Chiefs’ interim coach says Amakhosi will head into their clash against Ajax Cape Town high in confidence with the goal of a third-place finish on the table and qualify for the Caf Confederation Cup.

‘The win against Maritzburg will give us confidence going into the Ajax game,’ he added. ‘It’s our objective to fight for third position and qualifying for the African Confederation Cup.

‘But Ajax have a good side and they are fighting to survive relegation. We will plan to go out there, be professional and do our job. It will be a tough game, but we are definitely eyeing third spot.’

The match at Cape Town Stadium kicks off at 3pm.