Mamelodi Sundowns will put their unbeaten start to the season at stake when they take on SuperSport United in a Premier Soccer League match at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Wednesday.
The Brazilians are still unbeaten in the top-flight after 10 matches, having won eight, drawn two and they will come up against a SuperSport side, who have played 11 matches, won five, drawn three, and lost three.
Ahead of the Tshwane derby, Sundowns dropped points in their last outing after a 0-0 draw against Cape Town City while SuperSport suffered a shock 2-1 defeat against Marumo Gallants at Lucas Moripe Stadium.
The draw against City, saw Masandawana end their run of scoring in the top-flight which dates back to the draw against Chippa United on the second matchday of the season.
| Game | Mamelodi Sundowns vs SuperSport United |
| Date | Wednesday, November 24 |
| Time | 17:30 SA Time |
TV Channel, Live Score & How To Watch
| Online Streaming | TV Channel |
|---|---|
| DStv.com/DStv Now App | SuperSport PSL Channel 208 |
Squads & Team News
BackpagePix.Sundowns have not reported any injuries in their camp ahead of this encounter and they do not have any suspension concerns.
The PSL champions have also been boosted with the return to fitness of Rivaldo Coetzee and Khuliso Mudau, who had suffered knocks before the international break and they are now available to face Matsatsantsa.
Sundowns midfielder Haashim Domingo has warned his teammates to be wary of Matsatsantsa’s midfield which he said can cause them trouble.
“I think their midfield will be the key, it consists of Teboho [Mokoena], Sipho Mbule [whilst] Thamsanqa [Gabuza] and Bradley [Grobler] upfront and it will give them that key aerial presence,” Domingo said as quoted by the club’s official website.
“I expect that it’s going to be a direct performance from them in terms of long balls and playing on the second ball. I think we need to stay very tight, pick up the second ball and establish play from there.”
BackpagepixMeanwhile, Matsatsantsa will be without Buhle Mkhwanazi, who got injured during their defeat against Gallants.
Coach Kaitano Tembo is well aware that victory against Sundowns will get them back into the top three bracket and he will rely on Thami Gabuza, Mokoena, Sipho Mbule, and Bradley Grobler, for the much-needed victory.
SuperSport goalkeeper Ronwen Williams insists they have put aside their shock defeat against Gallants and are now focused to get a positive result in the Tshwane derby.
“We are coming from a disappointing defeat at home, and we are not happy with the outcome of that game. We did not apply ourselves well. The performance and effort were not there, and we got what we deserved. We have many things to fix,” Williams told the club’s official website.
“They are the champions and have not conceded. But we will go out there and fight. We have our ambitions and set our target in the league. We let ourselves down in our previous results, losing a game at home.
“We will give a better account of ourselves and we will not make it easy for them. We want to close the gap at the top of the log. We will give a much better performance than the previous one.”
Match Preview
Last season, the first-round meeting between the two sides ended in a 0-0 draw while the second round fixture saw Sundowns bag maximum points after registering a 3-1 win.
In the last five matches in all competitions, SuperSport are yet to beat Sundowns.
The last time Matsatsantsa registered victory against the Brazilians was in 2019 during the first round fixture of PSL when they won 2-0 courtesy of goals from Grant Kekana and Gamphani Jones Lungu.
In 2019, they met twice in the MTN8 final, the first meeting ending in a 1-1 draw before Sundowns won the second meeting 2-1 to advance 3-1 on aggregate while in 2020, they faced off in a PSL fixture which Sundowns won 2-1.
Sundowns were in a run of five straight matches before the 0-0 draw against City.
While Sundowns are sitting at the top of the 16-team table with 26 points from 10 matches, SuperSport are placed in position four with 18 points from 11 outings.
