‘The predominant factor we have now picked up as a membership is how to be part of these main tournaments,’ stated the Sundowns goalkeeper.
Ronwen Williams believes Mamelodi Sundowns’ gamers can use all of the expertise gained in continental competitors over time to discover a well beyond Tunisian giants Esperance and into the Caf Champions League closing.
Masandawana host Esperance on Friday night at Loftus Stadium, and wish to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the primary leg in Tunis if they’re to make the Champions League closing for the primary time since 2016, when Pitso Mosimane’s Sundowns beat Zamalek to carry the trophy.
Since then, Sundowns have made it out of the group levels in six of the final seven editions (their solely failure to do this got here in 2018), however haven’t made it to the ultimate once more, 4 occasions falling within the quarterfinals, and twice within the semis.
Sundowns did, nevertheless, win the inaugural Caf African Football League (AFL) final yr, whereas a big a part of the Sundowns squad had been additionally a part of the Bafana Bafana aspect that gained the bronze medal at this yr’s Africa Cup of Nations finals.
“In the last seven years Sundowns … have learned and gained experience,” stated Williams, the Bafana captain who has been at Masandawana since 2022.
“The predominant factor we have now picked up as a membership is how to be part of these main tournaments. The coach (Rulani Mokwena) stated to us that yearly we’d like to get out of the group, get to the semifinals and the ultimate and construct expertise.
“You see that with Al Ahly (document Champions League winners and semifinalists once more this yr), they’re the place they’re due to the expertise they’ve. I believe the final … years we have now been there. We went to the quarterfinals, we have now been semifinalists back-to-back
“There was the AFCON as effectively, it was good for the (Sundowns) gamers that so many people had been representing our nation, to have our experiences of being within the semifinals (there), in addition to being within the AFL closing … the MTN8 closing, we’d like to be taught from all of this.
“That is why you see sides like Al Ahly and Real Madrid, they are always there.”
‘So much stress’
Williams has been key to Sundowns making this stage, with a heroic efficiency within the quarterfinal penalty shoot out towards Yanga, comparable to that he produced within the AFCON quarterfinals and bronze-medal match with Bafana.
He would quite, nevertheless, that at the moment’s match doesn’t go to penalties.
“There is so much stress on the technical team, the coach, the players as well (in a shootout),” stated Williams.
“There is no pressure on the goalkeepers, we just enjoy it. But if it does go to penalties we will be confident.”
Source link
