Former Mamelodi Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana has offered a frank view on the Brazilians’ CAF Champions League Group C showdown against their ex-coach Rulani Mokwena’s MC Alger on Friday.
Masandawana are away in Algeria and meet Mokwena’s men at Ali La Pointe Stadium. Fresh from beating FC Saint-Eloi Lupopo 3-1 in their group opener last weekend, Sundowns are visiting bruised MC Alger.
Mokwena’s side is hard-pressed to pick themselves up after losing 2-1 to Al Hilal away last Friday. That makes the upcoming confrontation a high-stakes battle as MC Alger cannot afford to lose for the second successive time.
With The Doyen’s ever-demanding fans not patient to entertain another evening of points dropped, the ex-Orlando Pirates coach knows he has an insurmountable task in his hands. He has been plotting against players he is well familiar with from his time as Masandawana coach.
Kekana is well aware of the threat posed by Mokwena who could use his knowledge of Sundowns players to successfully plan Masandawana’s defeat.
“It’s going to be that game where you play against someone who knows you very well. This guy spent about seven years here,” said Kekana on the Pitchside Podcast.
“That’s so many years, I’m sure he knows what’s coming without even watching videos of previous matches. Of course, it needs players to be sober-minded in this approach to know that you are playing against somebody who knows you so much that you don’t have to hide your emotions.
“You can’t hide your facial expression or anything from that person. So, the preparations for this match, as a former player, I would easily say let’s go and play 90 minutes.”
‘MC ALGER IS NOT ON SUNDOWNS’ LEVEL’
The former Masandawana skipper has made a bold claim about the gulf between Masandawana and their Algerian opponents. While MC Alger had their Champions League run ending at the quarter-final stage last season, Sundowns reached the final and lost to Pyramids FC.
“As a fan now, we are going to win against this guy because we know him very well. We know the team that he is coaching. I don’t think they are on our level. That’s me as a fan,” said Kekana.
“But as a former footballer, I know what it means to play that Champions League match. You have to be sober in your approach.
“This is an away match, and you have to make sure that you play within the principles of the team, of course. You cannot be naive, unfortunately.”
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