Mamelodi Sundowns coach Jerry Tshabalala is bracing up for a tough semi-final match against Simba Queens in Rabat, admitting “this would be a little tougher” than their previous matches.
The South Africans have made a strong start to their title defence, defeating Bayelsa Queens, Wadi Degla and TP Mazembe 2-1, 5-0 and 4-0 respectively to reach the last four.
This means the defending champions are yet to lose any of their previous eight matches on a spin in the competition’s history, and they face the Tanzanians for a final place on Wednesday.
“Everyone has been talking about Mamelodi Sundowns and Simba Queens, it is a big match and everyone in Africa is looking forward to this game,” Tshabalala said at the press conference.
“We know Simba, they are a good side, they knock the ball around, they play a good game and are a very good side, but I am sure we are ready for Simba. But at Mamelodi Sundowns, we are treating it as every other game on the group stage.
“In the group stage, you will recall that we played three games that were tough and this would be a little tougher. One thing I like about my girls, is whenever we are under pressure we perform well, that is one thing about Mamilobi Sundown. The more we get pressured, the better we play our style of football.
“We are not calling for any team, we are just facing the challenges as they come, for now, it is Simba Queens, whoever comes in the final whether it is AS FAR or Bayelsa Queens. They will face the best team in Africa.”
Cup holders Sundowns’ ruthless form look unmatchable in this year’s competition and ‘Kappa’ as fondly called opens up on how he is keeping his side hungry and motivated to win every game.
“It is not easy to keep them grounded, but one thing I always remind them, is that they remember why we are here and to achieve that we have to stay grounded, we can only celebrate when we lift the trophy, no matter how many goals are scored,” he said.
“We have seen teams that scored so well and at the knockout stage, they couldn’t score goals basically you need to remind your players of teams like that, and seeing teams scoring left, right and centre. I always tell them that immediately we reach the semis that is when the tournament starts.
“Some of them have been with Sundowns for more than a decade now, when you see, we play good football, it is not overnight, it is a work of more than 10 years. There is something we need to embrace, we need to embrace our continent.
“We need to support women’s football in Africa, believe me, the support we get from the management, I don’t see any of our players going abroad. We wanna grow African football, and if we want to do that, we need to keep the best in Africa, so Africa can have the best and also the best leagues. With the support from the management, I don’t see any player going abroad.”
For goalkeeper Andile Dlamini, she insists her side is not getting carried away by their impressive start to the competition as they are aiming to see off their Tanzanian counterparts.
“The vibes have been always good from the first day, we are a bunch of positive players and we know why we’re here. We work extremely hard to be here, and now we are going to the semi-finals, and our focus is on Simba Queens,” said Dlamini.
“Until we wrap up the game and focus on the bigger goal, and that is why everyone is here I know as a team we are extremely excited to be among the last four teams and we are looking forward to doing our best and leaving God to do the rest.”
The 30-year-old won the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title and the Best Goalkeeper of the Tournament with Banyana Banyana earlier in July in Rabat – a feat she is highly motivated to replicate on her second stint in the North African nation.
“What comes to mind is a positive mindset. We came here as Banyana Banyana and we won the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations tournament and now we are chosen to be the best of Mamilobi Sundown here,” she added.
“It is always an honour to represent your team from your country, if you are one of those chosen to represent when you have made history in a certain country you will be positive. Morroco welcomed South Africa well and I hope they welcome Mamilobi Sundown as well.”
Source: Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF)