Lorch and Kekana strikes seal Sundowns victory over Nouadhibou
Thembinkosi Lorch and Grant Kekana’s strikes sealed Mamelodi Sundowns a 2-0 victory over FC Nouadhibou in the CAF Champions League as the Brazilians secured the spot in the quarter-finals.
Sundowns triumphed 3-0 when the two sides clashed in the first round of the group stages in November last year.
Nouadhibou came to the match having won three matches in a row in the Mauritanian Ligue 1 but failed to stretch their winning run.
Meanwhile, Sundowns returned to winning ways on Tuesday, beating La Masia 6-0 in the Nedbank Cup after they drew three matches against Polokwane City, Cape Town City and Orlando Pirates in the DStv Premiership.
While Masandawana dominated the early possession, they didn’t create any noteworthy opportunities in the first 15 minutes. However, they kept on making entries into the box of the home side, looking for a breakthrough.
GRANT KEKANA BROKE DEADLOCK IN 22ND MINUTE
It was in the 22nd minute when Grant Kekana broke the deadlock, slotting home from a well-taken free-kick by Marcelo Allende.
The hosts were physical and caused several fouls as they kept on struggling to deal with the dominance of the 2016 Champions League winners on the ball.
In the 32nd minute, Teboho Mokoena missed a clear-cut chance, failing to add the second for the visitors after a cut-back from Themba Zwane.
The Brazilians continued to bang the doors of Nouadhibou in search of more goals, but the hosts remained solid until the match reached the interval.
Sundowns missed some chances where they could have rattled the back of the net having found themselves behind Nouadhibou’s defence a couple of times. In the 50th minute, Kaw made a fantastic save keeping out Aubrey Modiba’s vicious effort.
The Mauritanian giants tried to progress the ball up the field but couldn’t make their way in the Sundowns’ half.
In the early stages of the second half, Rulani Mokwena gave runs to Thembinkosi Lorch, Ribeiro Costa and Matias Esquivel. He took off Peter Shalulile, Gaston Sirino and Aubrey Modiba.
With 10 minutes left on the clock, Ribeiro’s goal was ruled out with the lineman raising the flag despite being onside when the ball was passed.
In the 92nd minute, Lorch scored his first goal in the colours of Bafana Ba Style in what was his third match since joining from Orlando Pirates.
Mamelodi Sundowns and TP Mazembe have qualified for the quarter-finals after the DR Congo side defeated Pyramids 3-0 to take their points tally to 10 earlier on the day.
RELATED STORY: Why Lorch is eligible for Sundowns’ Champions League matches