Al-Ahly Saudi Arabia faces Mamelodi Sundowns in the Confederations Cup for Clubs

Al-Ahly Saudi Arabia will enter a different kind of test when it visits Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa, on Saturday, September 19, at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, in the Confederations Cup, in a confrontation that puts the Asian champion face-to-face with the African champion, and gives the winner the opportunity to continue the journey in the global tournament.

The task does not seem easy for Al-Ahly, not only because of the technical value of its opponent, but also because Sundowns is hosting the match on its home soil and in front of its fans, and at a stage in which it enters the local season without losing, relying on a group of the most prominent players from the South African national team and continental experience that was enhanced by regaining the African Champions League title after a wait of ten years.

Today, Sundowns is considered the most prominent force in South African football, but the club’s story goes back to the 1960s, when its roots began in the Pretoria region, before it later settled on the name “Mamelodi Sundowns,” in reference to the town of Mamelodi, located east of the administrative capital of South Africa.

The club's history witnessed a major transformation with the entry of South African businessman Patrice Motsepe into the club in 2003, before he fully owned it the following year. Since then, the club's ambitions and investments have gradually risen until it has transformed from a local force into one of the most prominent names on the African continent.

The club has a huge local record, as Transfermarkt data indicates that it has won the South African League title 18 times, in addition to four South African Cup titles, while it has won the African Champions League title twice.

At the continental level, Sundowns achieved their first title in the African Champions League in 2016, before waiting a full ten years to add the second star to their shirt in 2026, so that their recent coronation ensured their place in the Confederations Cup and facing the Asian champion.

The team arrives at its match against Al-Ahly in a strong position locally, after starting its season in the South African League without defeat, and is at the top with 20 points from eight matches, collected from six wins and two draws, in an indication of the team’s continued local dominance.

As for the last match before facing Al-Ahly, it ended in a 1-1 draw against Chippa United, after Sundowns needed a stoppage-time goal scored by Antonio van Wyk to avoid loss.

But this particular match caused a problem for Portuguese coach Miguel Cardoso, who was not satisfied with the circumstances that preceded it.

Changing the stadium to face Chippa led to amending the travel program drawn up by the technical staff, and Cardoso said that the decision “completely disrupted” the preparation plan to face Al-Ahly, after the team was forced to spend additional time away from Pretoria, at a time when the coach was planning to return his players early and give them two days with their families before entering the final preparations for the Confederations Cup. The change also affected the training program for players who did not participate in the match, making preparations for the confrontation less ideal than the coach wanted.

Despite this, Sundowns has one of its most important weapons against Saturday: the ground and the crowd.

The match will be held at the famous Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, which has a capacity of 51,762 spectators, according to Transfer Market data.

Sundowns supporters are known as the “Yellow Nation” or “Yellow Nation,” after the club’s primary color, and the team’s players do not view their presence as just a crowd spectacle.

Colombian striker Brian Leon spoke about this point specifically before facing Al-Ahly, stressing the importance of home ground advantage, and pointing out that the fans’ encouragement gives the players a great boost and makes them feel that they are not alone on the field.

The relationship between the team and its fans is not limited to statements that precede major matches. After winning the African Champions League, two experienced club players, Ugandan goalkeeper Dennis Onyango and Themba Zwane, spoke about the role played by the “Yellow Nation” in the team’s journey towards the title.

Onyango pointed out that the fans did not stop following and supporting the team, all the way to receiving the players and celebrating with them at OR Tambo Airport in the early morning hours, while Zwane considered that the second African star does not belong to the players alone, but rather belongs to the fans as much as it belongs to the team.

The total market value of Sundowns players is about 41.6 million euros, according to Transfer Market data. South African international midfielder Teboho Mokoena and striker Ikram Reiners share the top spot as the players with the highest market value on the team, with a value of 2.8 million euros each.

But technically, Cardoso has a group that includes a number of the most prominent South African football players. At the forefront of them is Ronwen Williams, the South African national team goalkeeper and one of the most important elements of the team, while Teboho Mokoena, one of the most prominent players in the national team, stands out in the midfield, along with Chilean Marcelo Allende, one of the main keys in building the game, in addition to the experience of Themba Zwane.

As for the attack, the coach has many options with the presence of Brian Lyons, Tashreeq Matthews, Kutluano Letlako, Ikram Reiners, and Lebo Mothiba.

Leon stands out in particular before the match with Al-Ahly, after the Colombian striker scored 18 goals in 35 matches last season, including five goals in Sundowns’ journey towards the African Champions League title, while he scored three goals in nine appearances this season so far.

Lyon himself showed clear respect for Al-Ahly before the confrontation, stressing that Sundowns is well aware of the level of players that the Saudi team possesses and the depth of its squad, but at the same time he stressed that Al-Ahly is the champion of Asia and Sundowns is the champion of Africa, and therefore the Saudi team is thinking in turn about the strength of its South African competitor.

In the last match against Chippa United, Cardoso started with a lineup that included Ronwen Williams in goal, with Thapelo Morena, Grant Kekana, Khulumani Ndamani, and Fawaz Basadine in front of him, and Teboho Mokoena and Marcelo Allende in the middle, with Sianda Ndlovu, Kutluano Letlako, and Tashriq Matthews behind Brian Lyon. It is the lineup that gives an indication of the nucleus that the coach can rely on against Al-Ahly, while the options remain open for any technical modifications.

On the other hand, Sundowns is missing one of its most prominent elements, the South African international right-back Khuliso Modau, who suffered a rupture in his Achilles tendon, an injury that Cardoso described as serious, stressing that the player will be absent “for a very long period,” with expectations that he will continue to be away until the end of the year.

Sundowns' injury list also included other names in the recent period, including Thapelo Morena, Keanu Cupido, Teboho Mokoena and Arthur Salles, but the status of some of them changed as the recovery process progressed and elements returned to participation, and therefore Mudau remains a major and certain absence from facing Al-Ahly at the present time.

However, Sundowns enter the match with clear confidence in their artistic identity. The team is accustomed to controlling the ball and building attacks patiently from the back, while relying on the quality of the midfielders and continuous movement between the lines, which is the method that made it the most present and dominant team in South Africa and one of the most stable African clubs in recent years, which means that Al-Ahly will not only go to Pretoria to face a big African name, but rather will face the continent’s champion on its soil, armed with the “Yellow Nation,” and in its ranks is a group of the most prominent South African stars.