Mamelodi Sundowns have announced that entrance for their CAF Champions League match against Al Merrikh of Sudan on Saturday is free for fans with a valid match ticket, vaccination certificate or negative Covid-19 PCR test no older than 72 hours and proof of identity (ID or driver’s license).
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, football games in the country were played without fans in attendance for two years, and the green light to have fans filling 50% capacity of the stadiums has been granted by the government and SA football bodies. Masandawana star Bradley Ralani reacted to having the Yellow Nation for the first time since joining the club a few months ago.
“It’s exciting, to say the least because we have been missing them. It’s nice to finally have them [at the stadium]. Having the 12th man with you always makes a huge difference, but at the end of the day, it’s still 11 v 11. The 12th man is just a morale booster we can use, though.”
The Brazilians, who are top of the table in Group A, look to get maximum points this weekend from fourth-placed Al Merrikh of Sudan. The two teams last played to a 0-0 draw in the first leg of this competition at the Al Salam Stadium in Egypt.
The Sudanese outfit have collected four points out of their five champions league appearances. Meanwhile, Masandawana sits comfortably at the top of the group standings with 13 points from five encounters. Widely acknowledged as one of local football’s finest current operators in attack, Ralani is anticipating positive results this time around.
“The last encounter ended in a goalless draw, and we surely learned our lesson from that. If you don’t take your chances, things like that will happen, so obviously, it’s going to be a lot different this time around.”
Bafana Ba Style do battle with their Sudanese counterparts at the FNB Stadium on Saturday afternoon in the final Group A tie before the knockout rounds. The game will kick off at 15H00 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport 209.
