Al Ahly assistant manager Samy Komsan is confident his side will get the better of Mamelodi Sundowns when the sides meet in the CAF Champions League Group A match at FNB Stadium on Saturday.
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The Red Devils come into this encounter having registered two wins in their last two games – a hard-earned 3-2 victory over Al-Merreikh and an easy 3-0 win over Pyramids.
Sundowns on the other side handed lowly Mathaithai FC a 6-0 drubbing in the Nedbank Cup in their last match.
“Traveling just after Pyramids game and the weather change between Egypt and South Africa put a lot of pressure on the players,” said Komsan as quoted by Kingfut.
“However, I completely trust the technical staff and the players and I am sure they can return to Egypt with a positive result.
“We studied Sundowns well and the little details make the difference in important games. We are determined to win our third consecutive Champions League title.
“Our group has strong teams and they are all aiming to qualify but we will do all we can to win the title.”
Sundowns edged Al Ahly 1-0 the last time the sides met in Cairo almost a fortnight ago. The Brazilians will be hoping to do a double over the reigning African champions and cement their place at the top of the Group A standings.
Sundowns are top with seven points from three matches, followed by Al Ahly and Al-Merrikh who are both on four points, having also played the same number of games as Sundowns. Al-Hilal are last, with only one point to their name.
Sundowns co-coach Manqoba Mngqithi, however, says the Brazilians are more concerned about reaching the quarterfinals of the competition than topping the group.
“Topping the group is not always the most important thing, what is important is to make sure that you qualify for the quarterfinals,” said Sundowns co-head coach Manqoba Mngqithi.
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