Mamelodi Sundowns will head into the second leg of the CAF Champions League quarterfinal tie against Esperance with an advantage following their hard-fought 1-0 win at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Tuesday.
This is thanks to the solitary second-half goal by lethal Namibian international striker Peter Shalulile, to ensure that Masandawana are in the driving seat when they go to Tunisia next week.
Bitter-sweet moment for coach
It was a bitter-sweet moment for Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso, who was up against his former side, which he guided to a final Champions League spot last season at the expense of his current club.
The game also saw Bafana Bafana international Elias Mokwana back on home soil, as he was on a mission to break South African football fans’ hearts by haunting Downs.
However, it was not the case as the Premier Soccer League (PSL) champions came out on top. And now they have one foot in the semi-finals.
The visitors were seemingly comfortable with sitting back and absorbing the pressure from the Brazilians. Even Peter Shalulile’s goal 10 minutes into the second half did not galvanise the Tunisians to try and get that crucial away goal.
Going back to the Sundowns goal … how it was orchestrated. It showed a lot of patience and some sheer quality from Lucas Ribeiro, who plunked a diagonal ball that landed onto the path of Jayden Adams, who then set up Shalulile with an easy tap-in to send the Downs crowd into a frenzy.
Supporters showed up, and showed in
Kudos to the Sundowns supporters, who heeded the call to gain free entrance to the stadium if wearing yellow regalia. They came out in their numbers to rally behind the team. This is considering that it is during the week at a very unusual kick-off time.
Orlando Pirates will also be in Champions League action when they take on MC Algiers at the 5 July Stadium in Algeria on Tuesday night. The game will get underway at 9pm (SA time).
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