Nick Said, Special to ESPN 6y

Eymael's Stars continue to shine in the PSL

There have been many surprises in this most unusual of Premier Soccer League (PSL) seasons, but perhaps none more so that the rapid rise of Free State Stars, who all of a sudden look potential title challengers under Belgian coach Luc Eymael.

It would be the most unlikely championship victory since Manning Rangers claimed the first ever PSL in the 1996/97 campaign, but given a number of factors in their favour, it is hard to rule it out.

First of all, everyone around them is stumbling, including league leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, who have lost three of their last four games and only lead Stars by three points.

Cape Town City are potentially too inconsistent to mount a serious title challenge, and the same could be said for Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates.

Stars will also not have the distraction of African competition that will weigh heavy on Sundowns and City in the coming months.

Eymael has the team organised, and their natural work-rate is among the best in the top-flight.

Only two clubs, Sundowns (28) and Baroka FC (22) have scored more than Stars' 19 goals this season, while defensively they have tightened up, with just a single goal conceded in their last four games.

Eymael did a similar job with Polokwane City last season before off-field issues soured his stay in Limpopo, and he now arguably has a better squad with which to work.

It is a massive change in fortunes for a side that only avoided relegation on the last day of the previous season. "When I signed here, nobody gave me a mandate on what to achieve," Eymael tells KweséESPN before the weekend 1-0 win over Cape Town City.

"But I have put pressure on myself to achieve the top eight, because coming from last season where the team only just missed relegation, that would be a big, big achievement.

"We have to remain humble, keep two feet on the ground and take it one game at a time. I said to my players that the next four games are crucial and after those we will see if we will compete for top eight, or maybe even higher than the top eight."

The remaining three games in that run are home to Maritzburg United, away at Ajax Cape Town and home to Baroka FC. They will then face a potentially crunch game against Sundowns on February 21.

Eymael is a flamboyant character who is not afraid to tell it like it is. He has great confidence in his ability to get the best out of teams and he is also able to walk the talk.

"I am very happy at Free State Stars," he added.

"When I arrived I found the players very well motivated, they are working hard and are committed to trying to succeed. I also found in front of me a very good committee, despite what people told me before I joined here.

"When it was announced that I would be coming here I had some phone calls from former coaches here who basically said I was crazy to take the job, but I have always found that it is best to form an opinion yourself.

"The Mokoena family have been superb, we have a very good relationship and together we are trying to build this club."

Eymael feels the game with enormous passion and when he feels like his side have been hard-done by, as he has on a number of occasions this season, he bristles with irritation.

That passion can at times get the better of him, but he is also fiercely loyal to his players and they seem to respond to that.

Just how far he can take them will be revealed in the coming weeks, but for a side who have such a commanding home record, and have also started to win away, they could yet profit from the inconsistency of those around them in the league table.

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