CAPE TOWN - Mamelodi Sundowns will continue their remorseless march to a fourth consecutive Premiership title by opening a six-point lead at the top of the standings after their match against basement dwellers Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila at Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane today (kick-off 3pm).
Since the 2017/18 season, Sundowns have not been unseated as Premiership champions after winning the 2018, 2019 and 2020 titles.
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After resting several key players in last Friday’s CAF Champions League match against Al-Hilal in Sudan, unbeaten Sundowns can haul out their big guns in Polokwane.
After 18 matches, they head the standings by three points, and struggling TTM are unlikely to upset the form book, which shows that they are on a three match winless steak.
TTM will also be without a head coach for the match as Malta-born Dylan Kerr has been appointed but will not have a work permit in time for the game. He is likely to be on the bench for Saturday’s away game against TS Galaxy.
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After 19 games, TTM are three points ahead of Black Leopards, who are rock bottom on 13 points from 21 matches. TTM, with 11 goals, have the lowest total in this season’s Premiership.
After the Sudan match, the confidence in the Sundowns team is sky-high. They fielded a team of mostly second-stringers and still managed a draw in an away fixture in Africa.
A Twitter feed from Sundowns on the eve of the match reads:
“The marathon continues! Another opportunity to go higher and higher!" It reflects the positive mood in the camp.
Player Reactions 📹
— Mamelodi Sundowns FC (@Masandawana) April 3, 2021
Haashim & Ricardo share their thoughts on fighting for a point away from home in tricky conditions at the Al Hilal Stadium 🗣️#Sundowns #TotalCAFCL pic.twitter.com/YoEyQDn0Jf
Last Friday, they were praised to the rafters by Al-Hilal's newly-appointed head coach Ricardo Formosinho, a former assistant manager at Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.
“Your team (addressing Sundowns co-coach Rulani Mokwena) plays like the big teams in England," Formosinho said in the post-match presser.
“Your movement, your wingers come inside, your strikers come deep, congratulations! Perfect like Tottenham, like Liverpool.
“Your team plays like the teams in England. Believe me, it is true.”
In October 2020, Downs and TTM played to a scoreless draw at Loftus Versfeld in the first-ever league meeting between these two clubs.
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