Lucas Ribeiro Costa, the Mamelodi Sundowns star player, has urged his teammates to travel to Egypt with the intention to compete and win the final.
Sundowns and Pyramids FC will face off in their CAF Champions League final second leg at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo on Sunday night.
Ribeiro was on the scoresheet for Masandawana during their 1-1 draw against Pyramids at Loftus Versfeld Stadium last Saturday.
Walid El Karti cancelled out the Brazilian’s wonder goal, scoring a crucial away goal right at the end of the game to put his side in the lead in the tie.
Message is to remain strong
“I am thrilled with the team and how we performed in the first leg at home. We fought together, but it was difficult to accept the way we conceded that goal in the last minute,” Ribeiro said ahead of the game.
“I am happy to have scored in the first leg, but the job is not finished. We’re going to Egypt, and I hope that we will finish the job that side.
“This is football; the message is to stay strong. We must go to Egypt and play very well. All games in the Champions League are difficult. Tactically, there’s less space to play, but it’s okay — we remain strong.”
After losing the Egyptian Premier League to Al Ahly on the final day of Tuesday, Pyramids, who will be fiercely motivated and likely desperate to end their stellar season under coach Krunoslav Jurčić with a major trophy, will hope to lift the trophy at the expense of Sundowns.
Komphela cautious but confident
Sundowns senior coach Steve Komphela expressed caution about the potential threat posed by the Egyptians, yet he expressed confidence in their ability to achieve success in Cairo.
“Sundowns is very experienced, and we’ve been through rough patches before. We have people like Teboho Mokoena, Ronwen Williams, and Khuliso Mudau — and apart from being experienced in helping the club to grow, they come from a national team,” Komphela said.
“These people have international experience and exposure, so we don’t back down. We played in Morocco, demonstrating our courage, and then we went to Al Ahly where we showed the same determination and succeeded.
“Without being arrogant, nothing will stop us. We must go there and play our game.”
