A meeting between the top two clubs in Africa is scheduled for Friday night when Mamelodi Sundowns visit Al Ahly for a return leg tie in the CAF Champions League semi-final at the Cairo International Stadium.
This comes after a goalless draw in the highly contested first leg, which took place at Loftus Versfeld a week ago.
Heading to the decider in Egypt, Masandawana will be looking not only to score goals, but to win the match and advance to the final, which will be only their second time reaching it in the Champions League.
Looking ahead to what is anticipated as a mouthwatering clash, Mamelodi Sundowns’ defender, Divine Lunga, admitted it will be a difficult encounter that will require his side to leave everything on the pitch if they want to advance to the final.
“I think it’s not going to be an easy game, just like when we played in Pretoria, but we are going to put maximum effort so that we can win the game.
“We don’t want to go to the penalties because penalties are like a game of gambling. So, we will need to put our A-game so that we can manage to score and win the game in 90 minutes,” he said.
When asked about the 75 000 capacity stadium they will be battling in for a seat in the final, Lunga stated that playing in a full capacity stadium will not be a first for the team, and it will be a non-factor.
“Playing in big stadiums will not be new for us, moreover, we have several players who are exposed to such crowds in their respective national teams.
“It’s going to be a normal game for us, and the huge crowd will not affect us in any way.”
To conclude, his Mamelodi Sundowns team-mate, Tashreeq Matthews, echoed Lunga’s sentiments, stating this encounter is a must-win and they will do whatever it takes to win.
He said, “It’s going to be a physical game, and we will have to do what we have to do to try and get the three points.
“In the first leg, Al Ahly
defended very well and made good runs, so we will need to cut their flow very early in the game to get what we want out of this game, which is a positive result.”
Kick-off is scheduled for 18:00 (SA time). The match will be screened live on SuperSport TV and SABC Sport.
Prediction
Al Ahly 1-1 Mamelodi Sundowns
Will Mamelodi Sundowns reach the CAF Champions League final?
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