Mamelodi Sundowns seek redemption as pressure mounts

Mamelodi Sundowns face a test of their character on Wednesday night. Beaten 1-0 by Polokwane City at the weekend, the Brazilians are going to have to prove they have the mental fortitude to get back to winning ways.

Their abilities playing-wise cannot be questioned, the slip-up at the old Peter Mokaba Stadium notwithstanding.

But it is the fact that they are facing the one team that managed to beat them and thus stop them from completing an unprecedented ‘invincible’ season last campaign that tonight’s match will be more about Sundowns’ mental strength than their football capabilities.

The clash with Cape Town City was always going to be a difficult one for Sundowns, who are surely still smarting from those final day blues when the Citizens spoiled their incredible season at Loftus Versfeld – Eric Tinkler’s team winning a match that was supposed to be the Brazilians’ coronation party.

Coach Manqoba Mngqithi and his team would have looked at this season’s fixture list and braced themselves for Wednesday night, eager to gain sweet revenge.

But now, they have to do more than just get even with City; they also have to convince the local football fraternity that they remain the championship favourites despite having slipped off the top of the table courtesy of that shock defeat at Polokwane City.

What does Mngqithi do though?

Against rise and Shine, he fielded a team that many would have deemed a ‘second string’, and they came unstuck – Sundowns being so poor as to fail to have a single shot on target against a Polokwane team that played the counter-attack very well.

Does he revert to his tried and tested players to win the match and ensure they remain within touching distance of their main challengers for the title, Orlando Pirates?

Remember there is also the small matter of Saturday’s Carling Knockout quarter-final clash with Kaizer Chiefs.

Which one does he prioritise?

Yet such is the strength in depth at Sundowns that whichever team he fields, Mngqithi cannot really be said to be undermining any opposition. What is sure though is that, for Sundowns – Wednesday night’s match is going to be way more about their psychological prowess than their ability to play.

Can they overcome the disappointment from the weekend along with the scars from last season’s last match?

Another club that will be eager to put a loss from their weekend past them and get the win is Chiefs, who return to the Peter Mokaba Stadium where they lost 1-0 to SuperSport United for a clash with Magesi FC.

This is Chiefs’ third successive match at the venue and they will be wary of the Premiership newbies who beat Pirates in the Carling Knockout.

In other matches on Wednesday night, SuperSport are away to Golden Arrows, while Royal AM and Polokwane City will square up in a clash of teams with tails up following their victories at the weekend.