Mamelodi Sundowns return to action with a Carling Knockout Round of 16 tie against Golden Arrows which they are fancied to win at the Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday.
Sundowns went into the three-week international break on the back of five straight wins in all competitions, which took them to the top of the PSL table, and into the CAF Champions League group stages.
The Brazilians cast aside SuperSport United, Marumo Gallants and Kaizer Chiefs, to maintain a fine start in the league, having beaten Mbabane Swallows of eSwatini 8-0 on aggregate in the CAF Champions League preliminary round.
That is a scary record for Golden Arrows who come into the match on the back of two straight defeats against Magesi FC and Sekhukhune United, having started the season with wins over Stellenbosch and Gallants.
Head-to-head
Arrows’ last defeated Sundowns in 2019 and since then, the Brazilians have won seven and drawn five against them.
There have been some heavy defeats in recent years which does not inspire confidence among Abafana Bes’thende supporters, including a 6-0 thrashing in April 2022 and 4-0 humbling in August 2023.
Arrows have scored four goals and conceded three in their last four games while Sundowns have put 12 past their opponents over that period while letting in three, which shows the kind of task Mabhuti Khenyeza’s men are up against.
Team news
Mamelodi Sundowns will be without influential midfielder Themba Zwane who suffered an Achilles injury during Bafana Bafana’s 1-1 draw against Congo on Tuesday which will rule him out for four months.
Defender Khuliso Mudau and midfielder Teboho Mokoena started the two matches against Congo and impressed, the latter scoring two goals in the first leg, and have put the spotlight on coach Manqoba Mngqithi who had dropped them from the squad prior to the international break.
What have they said?
Mngqithi is saddened to lose key player Zwane for a long time and feels he was not handled well in the national team after he had been keen to manage his minutes.
“It is sad when you lose some of your players that you were trying your best to save because I know this player for him to recover after a match, will not be the same as a younger player like Mabena,” Mngqithi said of the 34-year-old’s injury.
“To see a player like Themba playing 90 minutes in the first match and still starting the second match already for me was alarm bells. I think we could have dealt with this better as the two coaches.”
Time and where to watch
The match will kick off at 19.00 at the Lucas Moripe Stadium and will be live on SuperSport TV (SS2).
Predicted lineup:
Sundowns predicted XI: Williams, Mudau, Lebusa, Coetzee, Modiba, Allende, De Reuck, Ribeiro, Kodisang, Lorch, Shalulile
