What impressed Rulani Mokwena as they cruised past Coton Sport

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena has revealed one element that impressed him as his side cruised past Coton Sport in the CAF Champions League.

Sundowns continued their winning streak, stretching their run to 16 matches in all competitions with a 3-1 victory away from home on Friday afternoon.

The Tshwane giants went to the match disadvantaged as they lacked some of their top stars through injuries like Peter Shalulile, Themba Zwane, Haashim Domingo, Abubekar Nasir, Lebohang Maboe and Rivaldo Coetzee.

This, however, wasn’t an excuse for Masandawana not performing against Coton Sport. The selected players rose to the occasion, performed well and returned home with a positive result.

PLAYERS ROSE TO THE OCCASION

A lot of players in the Sundowns lineup are still new in the Champions League set-up.

“A lot of my players were playing for the first time in the Champions League, Cassius Mailula, Teboho Mokoena, Ronwen Williams, we had Denis Onyango as the number one last season, Mothobi Mvala, Grant Kekana and Marcelo Allende,” Mokwena told the media.

“The quality of the players also came to the fold, very big three points. We beat a very good side, a physical side with a lot of technicality. We just played the game the way it’s supposed to be played.

“This is Champions League. There will be teams that will be strong in certain phases. We are going to suffer together, then do what the game asks of you. This is the experience we get, we’ll get better, and we’ll improve.”

FOCUS ON AL AHLY

Rulani Mokwena-coached side now shifts focus to Egyptian giants Al Ahly, a side they defeated home and away in the group stages last season. They won both matches with 1-0 scorelines.

“Now we focus on recovering the team and getting ready for a difficult game against Al Ahly in Egypt,” Mokwena added.

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