Mamelodi Sundowns were knocked out of the CAF Champions League following a 1-1 draw with Al Ahly at the Lucas Moripe Stadium, losing the tie 3-1 on aggregate.
Following Masandawana’s defeat in Egypt a week ago, the team kicked-off knowing that victory over their opponents was the only result that would see them progress to the next round. The technical team made two changes to the side that started in Cairo, with Themba Zwane and Andile Jali making their way into the line-up.
Yasser Ibrahim pinged the Red Devils into the lead in the tenth minute of the clash when he headed home from a corner kick. The goal left Abafana BaStyle with a mountain to climb as they continued to resist pressure from their opponents in their own half.
After trailing by one goal and constantly poking holes in the Egyptian defence, Aubrey Modiba became a busy man on the left side of the pitch taking on players and putting in dangerous crosses. Eventually, the full-back forced the Egyptian Goalkeeper El Shenawy to make a save with a cross-come-shot from the flank.
On the attack again, Peter Shalulile created a brilliant chance when he controlled Modiba’s pass in the box before his shot was blocked out for a corner. It was from the resulting corner that Mosa Lebusa, who joined in the promising attack, levelled matters with a brilliant header into the back of the net following a Modiba’s cross from the other side of the pitch.
Both teams went into the half time break with a goal each and The Brazialians knew that they would need to score more than once in the second half to ensure victory.
The second half of the match got underway with Downs looking enthusiastic to turn pressure into goals with a double substitution, with Mauricio Affonso and Khuliso Mudau replacing Gaston Sirino and Thapelo Morena. Downs thought they had found their way into the lead when Peter Shalulile had the ball in the back of the net however he was adjudged to have handled in the build up.
With the game entering its closing stages, Gift Motupa, Kermit Erasmus and Lyle Lakay made their way on the field to build the attacking momentum. Unfortunately, luck was not on the team’s side on this day as Motupa’s shot on target was pushed aside by El Shanawy, whom minutes later showed his experience again denying Erasmus a chance to score.
The final round of the CAF Champions League quarter finals was concluded with a 1-1 draw, knocking out Mamelodi Sundowns on aggregate.
Masandawana will now turn their attention to the DStv Premiership Competition with their next game coming up on Wednesday 26 May against neighbors SuperSport United.
How we lined up: D. Onyango, Nascimento © (64’ Erasmus), Lebusa, Coetzee, Morena (53’Mudau), Modiba (73’ Lakay), Jali, Mkhulise, Zwane (64’ Motupa), Sirino (53’ Affonso), Shalulile
Subs: Mweene, B. Onyango, Lakay, Affonso, Erasmus, Motupa, Maboe, Mudau, Mkhuma.
What was the point of signing Domingo,Margerman if we wont utilise them? The tactics that we used in the sec half should hv been used in an away game in da first leg….u cant field Offonso,Shalulile,Erasmus,Motupa all at da same time!!!!!who’s gonna provide them?????Mudau??? Hay our technical team was tactically poor
The early goal by AL Ahly really put us off… We played well still. Congrats to Pitso and AL Ahly. I just wasn’t happy with Pitso at the end of the match… We respect him… He needs to respect us too… Im not sure what caused him to do what he did… Snubbing our technical team for a sportsmanship handshake. I won’t judge him too much…. But if he disrespected us… It’s all on him… This game was not Pitso vs Manqoba or Steve or Rhulani… It was Al Ahly vs Mamelodi Sundowns. That’s what history is going to say… Like I said, Pitso has all my respect… The scenes outside Lucas Moripe was uncalled for… We are supporters… We support our team… We don’t hate on the opposition… Good luck on Wednesday!!!
No surprises there, it was expected in any case. I’ll give these three coaches another season to prove themselves before I can throw them in our history bins. We’re just not in the class of Al Ahly, even at their worst.
The current team that we assembled this year is quality and can beat any team in the world however we need smart coaches.Our technical team has been poor tactically and technically because you can’t justify why you play Modiba ahead of Lakay who has proven himself to be excellent in that position and also a free kick specialist. Why Kekana is not playing?, we keep on playing Mkhulise and River at the expense of Jali and Kekana. Jali played well today but why was he not played in Egypt in the first place? Poor tactics and wrong team selection is what is costing us. Even the league we should have long won it if it was not for this wrong team selection. If we are still serious about winning caf champions league , let us bring in a coach because keeping the three coaches won’t help us win it, perhaps Steve can assist the coach and let the other two go to our junior teams because they have not learned from Pitso. I am so disappointed by this result.
If we bring in a new coach, just to ensure continuity of philosophy and structure of the team, the coach can be assisted by Steve, Kekana as a player coach, and Teko Modise must be brought in , he knows our style of play from Pitso, then you can see wonders from that team.Teko is under utilised where he is now, his talent is not being utilised fully, and it is on the field of play where he should be , because his football analysis tells you the dude knows football and he played it at high level
Sundowns ,like Al Ahly is a big team and I hate to settle for less because the former President has resourced the team like Al Ahly and other big teams in the continent, since 2016 when we won the CCL, Ahly has won it once last year like us , it will be for the second time within this period if they win it ,so the team that we have and theirs , there is not much difference, even though they have won it many times before since 1904 if not mistaken. Sundowns is big , if you don’t deliver you should ship out ,especially when there is a strong and already built team like the one we currently have, if you don’t deliver what is the excuse? Winning the local championship is what sundowns is used to and on top of that win other small cups, so the three coaches have failed us this far, in fact they have won nothing this far.
I can give them a benefit of a doubt to continue with the job at hand 2 make Sundowns the greatest team of all times.The problems maybe eminated from making them 2 head coaches at the same time, I’m referring to Ralani&Mngqithi& bringing Steve on board I still believe it was the right thing to do but we need the real head coach now whether it’s one of them but someone to take us forward but bringing a foreign coach to Sundowns has proven to be very disastrous.I still believe that Mngqithi or Kompela can take us some where.Its just some one needs to stamp his authority &analyse that some players were not brought by them but by the then coach who left us at an eleventh hour for greener pastures. I also believe that George Maluleke,Margeman,Langerman,Pieterse,Soumahoro,Mobbie, February should be loaned out or rather b sold to interested clubs just to open spaces for newcomers next season.But overselecting Maboe, Mkhulise,Morena&Cotzee is what is killing our team presently.All of them when it comes to reality r not helping us with any creativity or providing us with no assists at all.Another cause for concern is the lack of head work from Nascimento whether we having a corner kick or defending a corner.I haven’t seen the boy scoring with his head,I have a firm belief that Cupido can do the job for us.But all in all it’s not Doom&gloom for our coaches it’s just we r angry that they hardly spot the obvious things that happens to their players until we hate those individual players because of not putting those players on the bench when the need arises.If a player is good don’t spoil him with a starting line up even if you see he is off form.Let us leave Pitso alone we owe him &ows us nothing.He must enjoy his stay at Al Ahly &I wish he must also leave our players alone we r not a development team he must know that 70 million supporters or not but we are a big team with lots of abition.Al Ahly is 100 years old&we are 50 years old and we running our race at our own space and at our own time.
I agree with you Ayanda,we r having the wrong technical team.I mean it’s supporters who called 4 the inclusion of Jali in the starting line up&is the only one who was smart agressive.We needed 2 goals but the entire game we had only 3 shots on target.We had about 3 free kicks that were wayward before Lakay was introduced what r u looking for if u as a coach can’t identify smaller &finer details of your players.Mngqithi is obsessed with negative ball possession that has no quick transision, but only backpassess &sideway passing &boast about that.Mkhulise is our Iniesta but with wayward shooting really?We needed this win whether it’s one nill but school boy tactics from 3 people is unacceptable.Fielding Sirino who is obsessed with playing 4 Al Ahly whereas we were having Erasmus is another questionable selection.Having a mute coach who keeps quiet through out the game, players cannot have a sense of urgency.Rivaldo is more of anchoring the defense than helping us with attacks if you selected him& leave Kekana at home what r u looking at boasting only about static& pedestrian ball possession my foot.If there was no league championship believe u me we had nothing to celebrate for this season I mean we had Tshakuma to beat in the Nedbank only to find we left Onyango at home 2 be knocked out of the competition, only because we failed to use our sixth sense.Away game against Al Ahly & the home game was lost from the bench because of unnecessary favouritism.Its better to select Kapinga who wants to play for us for the rest of his life than to beg Sirino &lose crucial games at crucial stages like these.Put Sirino at home until he solve his problems with management,I don’t know whether you still remember how well we played in his absence in the start of the season.Go buy Ralani in Cape Town & bring Kutumela from Maritzburg.We have better trophies to figt for &freeze Sirino 4 the next 3 seasons & or rather sell him,we don’t care instead of him destroying our team.We can compete with Al Ahly,Esperance, Casablanca but with people who select players on merit not these who bring Modiba,Morena& Mkhulise without any purpose but to prove that they are right &we are wrong.
@Ayanda what value would kekana & modise bring into our technical team since they hv no coaching experience? Or u r jst rewarding loyalty with positions on da bench? I dnt understand y ppl r still complaining abt da exclusion of a 36yr old Kekana……n as for buying Kutumela😏😏😏then its means we should sell Erasmus n Motupa yet he is NOT better than them. By da way IT WAS BREATH OF FRESH AIR NOT SEEING DA WASTEFUL MABOE IN DA TEAM
How many shots at goal did we have yesterday?with Keke we are guaranteed at least a minimum of Five shots and remember football is not only retaining the ball but to makes spaces to shoot and score and we were lacking in that department. How can you play with four strikers? The technical team fail us by also playing Sirino who was selling tactics to Pitso
Member every time Sundowns plays a big game i will always look at Hlompho and i could tell you if we will the game. Remember what he did in the champions league against wydad, now people are destroying good players that brought us trophies and now they are paying the price, next season we will never win the league the way we play. We can say whatever we want to say BUT Hlompho has done very well for this team. Tiyani the same he is good in the air, good ball passer, he can shoot and score goals.
@Zipho many coaches started coaching and mentoring while they were still playing football, like Kekana and Teko were coaching sundowns players on the field, at least coaching starts there, from there you are given an opportunity to coach from the bench and in the process, do your coaching licenses , of course when you are there you learn from the head coach and in return you also assist him, that is how you and the entire team grows. Kekana and Teko know football in and out. Kekana despite his age, when given a chance he still plays better than many players out there and he can still score goals.Anyway I respect your view.
Seconded members sundownsfc is a big team with a poor technical team, they can’t even break defense of shakuma so if say it is possible to score 3 goals against AL ahly he was just fooling the media cause he is smart talker with no action, yes we beat al ahly 5 _0 but who was the coach? and the same coach we were playing against so maqoba is just playing for ball position that’s,
Zipho I’m referring in replacing Sirino when I’m talking about Kutumela .I mean Gaston is not committed to die for us on the pitch.And again the coaches should have started with one of them, Erasmus or Motupa,but we can’t be on bended knees and trying to beg a player who signed a 4 year contract on his own not at gun point.I was trying to say players come &go but Sundowns will remain Sundowns with or without those uninterested to play for us.I even mentioned Kapinga be utilized than relying on a rebellious player,as if he is supplying us with oxygen.I hope Zipho you will get my statement this time around.Yes Kutumela is playing for Martzburg I was mentioning that when it comes parting ways with Sirino.
@Mfana, regarding your views on Sirin, I think you are spot on member , I fully support you.Sirino does not show commitment to sundowns anymore and he should be sold and sundowns will remain big even when he is gone. We made him not the other way round.
Sorry member kutumela is going to chiefs forgot about him
Is there something I do not know here? Was Morena injured or what cod Mudau is a gud player but we need to loan him for experience first, that game was too big for him, and our build up was too slow, Jali making 10 touches on the ball looking for a teammate, Mkhulise as well
@Mfana I now get your point,dont worry abt Sirino’s attitude it will back fire when we put him on the tranfer list with a huge price tag,by da way,the team is already in talks with his replacement from Brazil
Guys let me differ with you just a little bit and pls I don’t need to be insulted, we lost to Al Ahly in Egypt when that stupid goalkeeper made blunders yesterday it was a tall order since our opponents were nothing to loose.
Mina ngingu Muzi I will prefer Wisemen to continue next season considering the beautiful football we are playing and pls don’t be fooled by those who are worshipping Pitso as if he was perfect it was like this while hewas here. Guys Kekana is old now let’s recruit young and hungry players not players that will sit on grandstand and get good goalpoacher to help Shalulile because Erasmus is injury prone.
We are good and most teams afraid of us even in the North Africa kuzolunga I know its painful to loose, lastly I fully agree with you on Sirino,Kby forever
They’re people who continue to tell us that Pitso made Downs to be what it is today forgetting that Downs also made him to be where he is now because after he was expelled from Bafana nobody wanted to recruit him even his present team didn’t look at him but now he thinks he’s big not even shaking hands of our technically team after the match.
Here is my take guys on this issue of being out smarted by Al Ahly! Pitso has become big because of Sundowns and he must behave as if he became a good coach on his own! He shld respect his other compatriots though he has outclassed them. Shaking hands with his former colleagues was necessary to show respect to his opponents! As to the squad i believe the team is okay in terms of the players that are currently at the club! Probably we just need 3 or 4 additions! I think we need another striker to help upfront, one central defender and a creative winger to replace Sirino in case he is released or he joins Al Ahly. One the coaching side i think the 3 wisemen are far from winning a CAF Champions legue cup judging them with what happened in those 2 back to back againts Al Ahly. Rhulani and Manqoba have learnt nothing from the days of Pitso. If you look at the team Pitso had assembled he even signed Seabi and Alffonso for the simple reasons that at times Champions league games are fought on strength ( Height or size of the body). Its very diffuclt for certain players to play against the North African teams because of their size. The coaches had time to prepare for these encounters, get Alffonso and Mvala fit by giving them game time and experiment with crosses and playing direct so the players understand the other plan B of our approach. How do you begin to eperiment with something that the team has never played against an opponent like Al Ahly????. Rivaldo is not giving us anything in transition? He plays very slowly even when he is supposed to give quick balls! He doesn’t even break opposition attacks! He is just there for patient passing! Maboe and Skhulise they have been over played for what reason i do not know! I still believe though that the 3 wisemen should be given another season after they have won the league! Probably the arrangement needs to be shacken up a bit with Steve becoming the head coach and the Manqoba and Rulani as his assistants! To be honest i do not see these guys wining the Champions league! They still have a lot to learn! On the domestic front i think they can give us something.
@Muzi, I agree with you right there, Sundowns was never made by Pitso, he contributed to what was already there, in terms of Brand performance and team performance and on the other hand , we made him in terms of enhancing the brand he is , locally, continentally and globally, he is there because sundowns made him, because without the resources that we provided him to compete at the global stage , he would still be around in the PSL. While I do not condone what a section of sundowns supporters did against him, but not shaking hands after the match with our technical team was uncalled for and unsporting behaviour for a well respected coach. Our technical team had nothing to do with the behaviour of supporters , unless there is something we are not told here.
He said after the match the person behind these attacks is not a supporter bt from the main office, wonder who he was referring to here, anyone in mind masandawana
The technical team team provided beyond reasonable doubt that Sundowns is too big to them,you can’t start with 2 strikers away and start with one striker at home,where you need to score two goals,it makes no sense.Performance review to the current technical team,last season we failed to win MTN8,failed to go to champions league semifinals,won two knock out trophies and league.This season failed to even go to a single final of a knock out cup and still failed to go to the champions league semifinals, the team has regressed big time under this technical team,verdict,they must GO because any coach win a league with Sundowns like Neil Tovey,Ingisend, Dolezar.We need a coach that can win us champions league. The current technical team is taking us no where,they worship players,they sacrificed Motupa for an unfit Zwane in that crucial game.
These coaches cannot win the champions league at any given time! I think they can do something on the domestic scene though! For me a search for new coach that contest the CAF Champions league must start now! The 3 wisemen can be given one more season since they are going to win the league! The were really exposed by Al Ahly when it comes match tactics! I do not think they had a plan at all! They were found wanting in both back to back matches against the Egyptians!
Members i can see you are making a lot of comments some are correct but let me correct the following: 1. Pitso built Sundowns we can make a lot of noise but the truth be told,2.He was insulted and that is why he did not shake hands- anybody can do that.3. Gaston Sirino cannot be blamed for our loss- The player is not a defender when Dennis made those 3 blunders and gifted Al Ahly with nice beautiful goals.4. Our Technical team is fighting and destroying all the players who made sundowns achieve the trophies- Hlompho might be old but all North African teams are dead scared of him. Rivaldo WILL NEVER play like Hlompho, the madala can take shots at goals and score, he can take and score from the place kicks, he can mark, he can pass short and long passes, he can push for a high line which are the qualities that Rivaldo does not have. Modiba and Mudau and Mvala are not our quality and you sell players like Tiyani Mabunda who can cut opposition passes and launch attacks, he is good in the air as well, he is a good marker and also a good shorter as the Northern teams know him. Members Pitso gave us 3 trophies and currently we might get JUST 1. Andile and Hlompho should have started against Al Ahly in Egypt.