Mamelodi Sundowns will be back in domestic action this Wednesday when they face SuperSport United in the highly anticipated Tshwane Derby at the Lucas Moripe Stadium.
Masandawana, who last played in the domestic league in September, will be looking to make a statement in this encounter and bag all points on offer before heading back to continental duties on the weekend. On whether the jam-packed schedule the DStv Premiership reigning champions have will affect their performance, coach Rulani said they only focus on one match a time to make things easier for themselves.
“It is difficult to speak about that because the reality is we just go one game at a time and we try to win the game and make sure that whatever it is that we have to participate in, we do it to the best of our abilities,” he stated.
He continued to explain that training has not been easy for his side due to the tight schedule, especially when he has players moving between representing the nation and playing back-to-back matches in other tournaments. He, however, stated that there is no room for excuses and his troops will continue to deliver outstanding performances in every match.
“To develop you need training and unfortunately we don’t train. Even during the FIFA break, I had to give a couple of players some days off. I had Bafana Bafana players in the national team who came back with injuries and it was very difficult to even conduct trainings. We have to go on with the business and win games and try the best that we can. We have no excuses and no matter how valid the excuses may be, we have that mentality where we present no excuses and try to give the best that we can every single day because that’s what this club deserves,” he said.
The Brazilians will be heading to the Lucas Moripe Stadium, this time around as visitors, after making a return at Loftus Versfeld. With a good pitch like the Lucas Moripe Stadium, coach Rulani believes that the derby will be an entertaining one, where two good teams, who are sitting on top of the table, will display good football.
“I’m happy that we have prepared the stadium for SuperSport United, so we will be playing on a very good pitch and that’s one of the conditions you need for a good game. You also need a good team, which is Mamelodi Sundowns and a good opponent, which is SuperSport United. Those three conditions can for sure put us in a space where we can expect a good derby on Wednesday,” he concluded.
Mamelodi Sundowns do go head-to-head with SuperSport United on Wednesday evening at the Lucas Moripe Stadium. Kick off is scheduled for 19H30, live on Supersport TV.