‘Sundowns are beatable’
WHAT a game we have in prospect: The most exciting club on show in the PSL taking on the best team on the continent. In essence, that is the spectacle in store for the Mother City’s football followers when Cape Town City host Mamelodi Sundowns at Athlone Stadium on Friday night (8pm kickoff).
Let’s elaborate a little further. Last season, Sundowns sleepwalked their way to the PSL title, that’s how good they were.
In October last year, the champion Pretoria club marched on to even greater heights, when crowned continental champions after beating Egyptian giants Zamalek in the final of the Caf Champions League. But the greedy-for-success club wasn’t satisfied with that – they then went on to win the Caf Super Cup last month, defeating TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo. This season, Sundowns are again everybody’s favourite to defend their PSL title. They have in spades in class, quality and BMT (big-match temperament). But, as impressive as that may be, bear in mind that Sundowns have a long, storied history and a hefty cheque book to depend on.
In contrast, City are a new club. Established in June, and relocated from Mpumalanga, it required lots of dedicated and insightful effort to put in place the structures to make the club as efficient as it has been this season. Many believed it was doomed to fail – but they’ve surprised all and sundry, even themselves, with the beauty of their football, courage of the squad and determined industry of a really professional, hardworking group of footballers.
Take all of that background, place it in the confines of a football arena, with three valuable points on offer for two teams with an eye on the PSL title, and imagine what a game we have in prospect.
City coach Eric Tinkler is fully aware of the significance of the occasion. In fact, while he has, in the past, always downplayed his team’s title credentials, he now finally acknowledges that it is time to consider the championship a possibility.
“It will be tough,” said Tinkler. “But, in my mind, if we win against Sundowns, then we have to consider that we could be potential title winners. That is the magnitude of the fixture … It’s a game in which we need to collect three points.
“After the draw against Pirates two weeks ago, which for me was two points dropped, it was important that we got the three points against Baroka last weekend. We did that, and now it’s important that we kick on and win again.
“I always tell the players that you win league titles not by beating the Sundowns, but rather the Barokas… The message on Friday is that Sundowns have everything to lose and we have nothing to lose. There’s no pressure on us.”
Tinkler, however, was also quick to concede that City would need to take into consideration the calibre of the excellent Brazilians squad.
“We beat Sundowns before (in the corresponding first round match), but they have pushed on since then,” said the City coach. “They’ve made some good signings, especially in defence, which has added value to their squad. Their defence was always an area where I thought they had a weakness, but in new players like (Fares) Hachi and (Ricardo) Nascimento, they’ve got some great depth.
“Look, whoever they send out on Friday, they’ll have quality on the field. They could probably field three starting line-ups that any other PSL team would love to have. They are the best team in the country – and they deserve to be because of the football they are playing and the quality of their squad.
“For us, the approach is that we have to be mentally strong. Are Sundowns beatable? Yes, they are … But we have to play our football and just go out and enjoy the occasion.
“The players are highly motivated and they know the importance of the game. The message we want to send out on Friday is that we’ve got quality, and we want to finish the season as high as we can.” Friday: Platinum Stars v Chippa; Wits v Bloem Celtic; CT City v Sundowns (Athlone Stadium, 8pm) Saturday: Chiefs v Pirates; Arrows v Maritzburg Utd; United v Ajax (Lucas Moripe Stadium, 8.15pm) Sunday: FS Stars v Highlands Park; Polokwane City v Baroka