Downs call out to their yellow nation
Pitso Mosimane has put up a challenge to the Mamelodi Sundowns fans ahead of their crucial Caf Champions League match against rivals Wydad Casablanca tomorrow afternoon at the Lucas Moripe Stadium. Mosimane wants the
Masandawana faithful to replicate the kind of atmosphere that Wydad fans create whenever Downs travel to Morocco. “The yellow nation has been good, they have helped us and they have carried us. They are our 12th player but the challenge is to match Wydad on the pitch as players and coaches and I believe that our supporters would want to put a challenge to the Wydad fans,” said Mosimane.
“They (Wydad fans) fill the stadiums and they have about six drums lined-up, we have three now and we are moving up a little bit. Those drums make a lot of noise and that is the challenge. They sing for us and they gave us a standing ovation and they chanted my name (Sundowns drew 0-0 at Wydad earlier in the group stages), it was humbling. We need to show, as the yellow nation, that we are capable of doing the same or better. That is my challenge to my people,” he added.
While “Jingles” would love to hear the beating of the drums electrify Atteridgeville and see the Masterpieces Moripe Stadium filled to the brim, the bigger picture is to walk away with all three points, or at worst with a point, and finish at the summit of Group C.
“The game against Wydad is forever a derby. Those games are never easy games and as much as we have both qualified, there is a lot of pride and bragging rights at stake. What is very important is who finishes first in the group and that is not because we just want to finish first..we want to avoid playing the number one teams from the other groups.
“This is a big game and we don’t have to hype up the players.
They want to play this game. It is a game that the continent wants to see. I am not talking about Morocco only, but it is a game that Egypt will be watching. Tunisia will be watching as well because anyone of us is capable of playing in the semifinal.”