History in Downs’ favour as they welcome Esperancé
Brazilians aim to overturn 0-1 deficit in semi
As Mamelodi Sundowns look to overturn the 1-0 defeat to Esperance Tunis in the CAF Champions League semifinal return leg at Loftus Versfeld Stadium (8pm) tonight, they will draw confidence to the fact that they have never lost both games against a single opponent in the knockout phase of the competition.
Esperance’s 1-0 win in the first leg in Tunisia last weekend has set the stage for an intense battle this evening, with a place in the final up for grabs to face either Al Ahly or TP
Mazembe. What also gives Masandawana confidence is that at home, they have been excellent in the Champions League as they have lost only one of their 31 matches, and that was against CR Belouizdad three years ago in the group stage.
They remain unbeaten at home in the knockout matches with six wins and a draw. A 20 victory will be enough to see Rulani Mokwena’s side reach their third final, while a 1-0 win will see the match go into penalties. But they come against a side which defensively has proved difficult to bridge. Esperance have conceded three goals in this competition this season, and that was in one game – against Al Hilal away from home when they lost 3-1 in December.
Since then, they have kept 10 clean sheets in 11 matches, and with Sundowns having failed to score in three successive games in the knockout phase, this should be a concern coming up against a side that hardly concedes. However, Mokwena said they have a plan to overcome that.
“There is work that we are doing every single day to try to overcome that. A major part of this is that we don’t spend time on the pitch together,” Mokwena said during a press conference yesterday. “We are aware of everything, and the players are [also aware of that].”
Sundowns goalkeeper Ronwen Williams said they will draw solace from their African Football League (AFL) success, when they went to Wydad Casablanca and lost the game but overturned the results in the second leg. “[But] That game was a bit different because we had an away goal.
“But again, we also draw inspiration from the [European] Champions League that we watched recently... just go out there, play and win the game.
“The most important thing going into this game is to not concede. And I don’t think we concede a lot of goals at home. AFL, I think we had five clean sheets in six games.”
The Brazilians will welcome key player Teboho Mokoena after he missed the first leg in Tunisia last week due to an injury he picked up in a DStv Premiership match against Moroka Swallows.