Johannesburg – Mamelodi Sundowns coach Manqoba Mngqithi says that they have done an intensive study on their opponents Al Hilal ahead of their CAF Champions League group stage match on Friday.
Sundowns have a tricky assignment against the Sudanese giants and the Brazilians will need to get their group stage campaign off to a great start if they harbour any chance of progressing far in the tournament.
Another factor that is making the SA champions a little uncomfortable is that the match will not take place in Sundowns’ slaughterhouses Loftus Stadium and the Lucas Moripe Stadium in Atteridgeville.
The two Pretoria venues did not meet CAF stadium requirements for group stage matches. The game has now been pencilled for the Royal Bafokeng in Rustenburg.
Kick off is at 6pm.
“We have done an intensive study on Hilal,” said Mngqithi.
“We have watched a lot of their matches, and also the matches that we played against them last season in Sudan and in SA.
“Their team has not changed that much. We know that we are playing against a team that is robust, a team that is aerially very strong.
“Their two centre-backs are tall, their midfielders are tall, their number 10 is tall. So, it’s a very tall team and generally, against such a team, the game is likely to be on two fronts, – either on set-pieces or their counter-attacking.
We anticipate that they may sit back and want to catch on the break, but set pieces are always the order of the day against a team like Hilal,” added Mngqithi.
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