Brazilians up against it on and off the pitch
GUINEA side Horoya will rely on their incredible home form and a passionate crowd when they host Mamelodi Sundowns in their African Champions Group C clash in Conakry today.
The fixture has been held over from last week‚ moved to allow Sundowns to host Barcelona‚ and Pitso Mosimane will be wary of his side being cut adrift from the top two should Horoya come out victorious.
They opened their campaign with a 2-1 away win at A S Togo-Port‚ while Sundowns were held 1-1 at home by defending champions Wydad Casablanca‚ who have since gone on to thump the Togolese 3-0.
Horoya have won 45 of their last 51 games at home in all competitions, with the other six drawn‚ including a 0-0 stalemate for SuperSport United in the African Confederation Cup last year.
Their last home defeat in the Champions League came in 2014 when C S Sfaxien claimed a 1-0 success.
Horoya warmed up for their clash with Sundowns with a 5-0 domestic league victory over Satellite FC last Wednesday and are brimming with confidence going into the tie.
“This is a national cause that we must defend‚” Horoya vice-president Soufiane Souare said.
“Because when you are engaged in a continental competition‚ it is not only the cause of Horoya that is important‚ but it concerns the whole country.
“So I call on all Guineans to mobilise massively on Tuesday for the match against Mamelodi Sundowns. I am convinced that we can take a big step towards qualification [for the knockout rounds] on Tuesday.”
Led by French coach Victor Zvunka‚ who has taken the side to the last three domestic league titles in Guinea‚ the side has a number of notable stars.
Among them is Senegalese international goalkeeper Khadim Ndiaye‚ who has been included in coach Aliou Cisse’s final 23-man squad for the 2018 Fifa World Cup in Russia next month.
The club also received a boost at the weekend when Ghana-born Burkina Faso international striker Ocansey Mandela signed a new twoyear contract to bind him to the side until 2020.
He is a key cog for the team and has twice been voted the best foreign player in the league since his arrival in Guinea in 2012.
South African clubs have only lost one of their eight continental matches against Guinea opposition – a 2-0 defeat for Ajax Cape Town against Fello Star Labe in 2005‚ though the Urban Warriors still advanced to the next round.
Horoya and SuperSport played to 2-2 and 0-0 draws in the Confederation Cup last season. —