Chiefs trail 1-0 from the away leg of their CAF Confederation Cup second-round tie with Zambia’s Red Arrows and must find a way to win in the return fixture in Durban on Friday if they are to reach the group stage.
They have trailed after the first leg of CAF knockout ties on eight previous occasions and advanced only once, though that was last season in similar circumstances.
They lost 1-0 away to Angola’s Kabuscorp in the Confederation Cup but claimed victory by the same scoreline at home to send the tie to penalties. They advanced 5-4 on spot-kicks.
But the seven occasions before that all ended in exits, including twice against Zambian sides.
They lost the first leg to Nchanga Rangers 2-0 at home in the CAF Cup in 2000 and could only draw 0-0 away.
In the 2018/19 Confederation Cup, they lost 3-1 to ZESCO United on the road and then 2-1 at home, losing both legs.
Other losses have come in the Champions League to Espérance (2005), AS Vita Club (2014), Raja Casablanca (2015) and ASEC Abidjan (2016). They also lost to the latter in the 2014 Confederation Cup.
A victory by at least two goals in the return leg this season against Red Arrows would give Chiefs their first outright aggregate comeback from a first-leg defeat in CAF competition.
In all, South African clubs have trailed after the first leg on 68 occasions in CAF competitions and overturned 24 of those deficits for a 35% success rate.
Aside from Bloemfontein Celtic, Cape Town City, Royal AM, Sekhukhune United, Stellenbosch FC and TS Galaxy, who all trailed once after the first leg and failed to overturn the deficit, Chiefs have the worst record, advancing 12.5% of the time.
Sundowns have trailed 15 times and advanced on five occasions (33%), while Pirates have trailed seven times and advanced twice (29%).