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Sundowns’ Mokwena – It’s only half time
'This is half time but with 90 minutes left,' said the Sundowns head coach.
Rulani Mokwena has warned his charges not to be complacent in the second leg of their AFL quarterfinal against Petro de Luanda on Tuesday. Picture: Darren Stewart/Gallo Images
Mamelodi Sundowns are not getting carried away with the healthy 2-0 lead from the first leg of their quarterfinal clash against Petro de Luanda in the African Football League (AFL).
The two teams will meet again on Tuesday as Sundowns make a return to Loftus Versfeld, where the winner will qualify for the semifinals of the lucrative CAF competition.
The Brazilians produced an inspired performance to snap a run of two losses on penalties at the hands of Orlando Pirates and TS Galaxy .
Rulani Mokwena cautioned against complacency in the return leg against the Angolan giants who held their own against Sundowns for the better part of the game before Marcelo Allende and Thapelo Maseko scored in the 2-0 victory.
“We have seen many things happen in football and we have seen teams come back from greater scorelines,” Mokwena warned after the game at Estádio 11 de Novembro in Luanda on Saturday.
“We look forward to taking the lead back to South Africa but we will approach it as 0-0. My message to the players would be to remind them about the game we played a couple of days ago in a cup game in South Africa.
“At half-time we were 2-0 down (against TS Galaxy) and we came back in the second-half and we made it 2-2. This is half time but with 90 minutes left. It’s important to remain humble, respect our opponent and the quality they have. We will play the game and not the scoreline.”
The Tshwane-based side didn’t have it all their own way in Angola – they needed two second half goals to take a huge step towards the last four of the inaugural knockout competition.
‘We beat a very good team’
“”We beat a very good team with good organisational forms. They are a good team and you have to give a compliment to our team for an excellent shift,” Mokwena said.
“Tactically, we were very good. The first half we weren’t so good, we struggled a little bit but we were fantastic in the second half. Compliments must go to the group of players for the adaptation and an incredible performance throughout.
“Fortunately or unfortunately, it is not my responsibility to judge the performance of the opposition out of respect for the coach because that is his job and I’ve got to respect that. Secondly, because this is half-time and there’s still the second leg to come.”
