National pride at the heart of bitter rivalry between Sundowns and Lobi Stars
Mamelodi Sundowns’ tense Champions League showdown against Nigeria side Lobi Stars took an ugly turn when coach Pitso Mosimane and his visiting counterpart Solomon Ogbeide were involved in a heated exchange after the encounter at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday night.
Tempers flared after Mosimane accused Ogbeide of refusing to shake his hand when the two sides met in the away leg in Enugu at the beginning of the year.
Ogbeide‚ who initially did not want to be part of the postmatch press conference‚ said there was a misunderstanding about a training venue in
Enugu.
“In Nigeria there was an argument when Sundowns wanted to train early on an artificial pitch‚” he said.
“I asked my boys to leave the field and called Sundowns to train but they refused. I refused to shake his hands in the first match in Nigeria but it is in the past. After the match here I tried to shake his hand but he refused.
“You are not bigger than me and I am not bigger than you and if you don’t greet me it does not diminish the quality of African football.
“When he came on Saturday‚ he just passed me but I was focused on my team.”
At some stage Ogbeide even threatened to leave the room in the middle of the interview as emotions ran high.
South Africa and Nigeria have a long-running rivalry that is often laced with tension and the fiery Sundowns coach was having none of it on Saturday‚ insisting that the match had graduated from being just a game between two clubs and had become a tussle for national pride after his charges thumped the West Africans 3-0.
“It is about the national agenda and the flag‚ you remember the story of who is better between SA and Nigeria‚” Mosimane said.
Mamelodi Sundowns became the second qualifiers for the CAF Champions League quarterfinals by outplaying Nigerian visitors Lobi Stars 3-0 near Pretoria Saturday.
Trophy-holders Esperance were first to book a last-eight place, defeating Horoya of Guinea 2-0 Friday to clinch first place in Group B. The other six qualifiers will be known next Saturday after the final round of group matches.
Sundowns could not have wished for a better start as Thapelo Morena scored 106 seconds into the first half before a large crowd.
Themba Zwane and Lebohang Maboe then netted within a minute close to halftime, leaving the former champions with a three-goal halftime advantage.
Sundowns coasted through the second half, content to retain the big lead and knowing that maximum points would guarantee a top-two finish in Group A and a quarterfinals place.
Lobi were a huge disappointment, failing to show the spirit and defensive organisation that earned them an unexpected draw away to Wydad Casablanca of Morocco in the previous round.
Wydad had hoped to join Sundowns in the last eight by winning in the Ivory Coast against ASEC Mimosas, a side they trounced 5-2 in the opening match-day two months ago. But they came unstuck in Abidjan as Amed Toure netted twice to end a five-match personal goal drought, earning ASEC a 2-0 win.
Sundowns have 10 points going into the final series of minileague matches, Wydad and ASEC seven each and Lobi four.
Should Wydad beat Sundowns in Morocco and ASEC defeat Lobi in Nigeria, there will be a three-way tie on 10 points, but the South Africans are sure of a top-two finish on head-tohead records. Whatever the outcome, two former champions will advance with Wydad winning the elite African club competition in
1992 and 2017, Sundowns in
2016 and ASEC in
1998. –