Denis Onyango, the Mamelodi Sundowns goalkeeper who missed his side’s CAF Champions League group stages opener away to ES Setif in Algeria at the weekend, yesterday hailed his teammates for a hard fought 2-0 victory and said the win proved that the Brazilians were not out of place at that level.
He could not make the trip to Setif because of suspension and Wayne Sandilands took his place between the sticks, producing a clean sheet to make sure Tiyani Mabunda’s wonder goal in the first half and Khama Billiat’s solo effort in the second were enough to guarantee the three points away from home.
“I thought the guys played their hearts out despite all the talk that we had made our way back into the tournament through the back door,” Onyango said.
It’s true. Sundowns had at first been relegated to the CAF Confederation Cup following defeat to AS Vita Club in April and faced Medeama SC from Ghana only to squander a 3-1 win first leg win to fail in their attempts to reach the group stages of the continent’s second tier tourney. But they were thrown a lifeline when CAF announced that AS Vita had used an ineligible player in the earlier rounds and would be booted out.
“That meant our holiday was cut short because we were reinstated. But watching the game on the night, it did not look like any of the guys out there were still on holiday mode. Their heads were up, they executed the game plan and I am especially happy for Wayne to be able to keep a clean sheet in such a tough and hostile environment,” explained Onyango.
“I think this shows everyone who thought we were lucky to be back in the group stages that we actually belong in the Champions League and can challenge all the other teams in our group to be able to reach the semi-finals. For me, we were unlucky to have been knocked out in the first place and in a way it is poetic justice that we were so efficient against Setif.”
Sundowns absorbed the pressure in the opening minutes of the match as Setif piled on the pressure until the visitors hit them with a sucker punch when Mabunda scored in the 33rd minute with a long range strike. Billiat added a second shortly after the hour mark after dancing past Setif defenders to squeeze the ball past Sofiane Khedairia.
“They expected a tough encounter of course,” said Onyango. “That is how it is when you play away and Sundowns players know that because there are a lot of internationals in the team. It's important to win your home games and then you can either draw or try to win when you are on the road to reach the semi-finals.” - The Star
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