Mamelodi Sundowns had a perfect start to their CAF Champions League group stage journey on Saturday afternoon. It is Nuno Santos and Marcelo Allende’s heroics that saw them walk away with a 3-1 victory and three points at Loftus Versfeld.
Masandawana had a brilliant start to the match, with a fourth-minute goal fromSantos. He had made a perfect run with an elegant finish to hit it home after Miguel Reisinho had set him up from outside the box.
Just before the 15-minute mark, a chance that rattled the goalkeeper almost saw the hosts doubling their advantage. Santos had supplied to Tashreeq Matthews on the right flank. Matthews then hit a shot towards goal, but couldn’t keep it below the crossbar as it missed the target by a few inches.
The Congolese side looked for a leveller, and they came close to finding it when they bypassed the Downs rearguard to enter the danger area. Luckily, Keanu Cupido managed to clear it away with a kick.
Desperate to win their home match with a convincing scoreline, Bafana Ba Style were creating convincing chances. Unmarked inside the area, after receiving a defence-splitting pass, Iqraam Rayners powered a shot which rolled off the target by a few inches.
Reisinho, again, made a beautiful supply into the area, which was received by Matthews, who redirected the ball towards goal. His header, however, rattled the woodwork to deny them their second goal.
In the closing stages of the opening half, the hosts were hit with a sucker-punch when Lupopo took advantage of their lapsing concentration, beating RonwenWilliams and levelling matters. This saw the two sides heading to the break all level.
The second stanza resumed with a slow start, with both sides not pulling any threats. Ten minutes later, the Brazilians started showing signs of urgency and looking for a goal that would see them snatch back the lead. Reisinho almost did that by going for a place after Aubrey Modiba’s cross. The shot was, however, blocked by the Lupopo body that stood in front of him.
In the 61st minute, Downs finally managed to regain the lead through Marcelo Allende’s goal. The hosts had found space and capitalised on it with a goal the keeper could not beat.
Just before the 80-minute mark, Santos recorded himself a brace following his glancing header to make it three goals for his side. He had received the ball from substitute Arthur Sales, who made a spin and turn pass to the area, where Santos headed it into the net.
Before the full-time whistle was blown, Lupopo almost waned Downs’ lead after beating the defence inside the area. The ball was, however, luckily cleared away as it went across the face of the goal. Masandawana will now go top of the Group C table following a successful day out in Loftus.
How we lined up: Williams ©, Mudau, Cupido, Reisinho, Modiba, Kekana, Mokoena, Santos, Allende, Rayners, Matthews.
Subs: Pieterse, Adams, Lunga, Sales, Mkhulise, Morena, Johannes, Maseko, Ntsabeleng.
SOURCED FROM DOWNS WEBSITE.
