Sundowns look to dethrone Pirates with Arrows win

Mamelodi Sundowns will aim to reclaim the Betway Premiership top spot with a commanding victory over Lamontville Golden Arrows at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Wednesday.

Kick-off is at 7:30 pm CAT.

CURRENT FORM

Sundowns delivered a strong performance by securing a 3-1 victory over Sekhukhune United on Sunday, which has now extended their unbeaten streak to two matches, while also marking their second consecutive win.

Therefore, Masandawana continue to sit firmly in second place on the league standings, remaining level on points with runaway leaders Orlando Pirates, who maintain their advantage at the top of the table thanks to a superior goal difference.

Meanwhile, Arrows played out a hard-fought 0-0 draw against Chippa United on Saturday in their most recent encounter, extending their unbeaten run to five matches coming into their clash with the league champions.

As a result, Abafana Bes'thende sit in 10th place in the Betway Premiership standings - three points behind eighth-placed TS Galaxy and a win over Sundowns would see Arrows climb into the top eight if other results go their way in midweek action.

TEAM NEWS

Both teams head into their clash with no suspension concerns in terms of players, as Lamontville Golden Arrows are set to welcome back their influential Ivorian midfielder, Isaac Cissé, who has now completed his two-match ban.

However, Mamelodi Sundowns have a long injury list, which features Denis Onyango, Mothobi Mvala, Thapelo Morena, Zuko Mdunyelwa and Bathusi Aubaas, who were all ruled out of the game against Sekhukhune United.

WHAT WAS SAID?

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso

“We need to fight for all the points for our objective, and we need to create that commitment. Anyway, teams that fight like this until the end usually get rewarded; today (Sunday), indeed that happened," Cardoso said.

“And I think if we see the last three matches we’ve played, we played Sekhukhune [at] home, AmaZulu away, [and] Pirates away; it’s a tough road, and the boys did well. Again, congratulations to all of them; it’s not easy to play.”

Golden Arrows head coach Manqoba Mngqithi

"It was the weirdest game [against Chippa United] I have watched my team play. I cannot tell you what was really happening today. Almost everybody was tired. I haven't seen my team cramping, and today they were cramping," Mngqithi said.

"The game was very open; we could have wrapped it. We created a lot of good chances. It is a game that I really want to forget as quickly as possible, because it was one of those games where I did not understand what was happening."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Iqraam Rayners, Mamelodi Sundowns: The Bafana Bafana international came off the bench to grab a brace, which inspired Masandawana to a win over Sekhukhune United and he will be keen to replicate the same performance against Arrows.

Sede Junior Dion, Golden Arrows: The Betway Premiership's top scorer with nine goals, including one which helped Abafana Bes'thende overcome Sundowns 1-0 in the first round clash in Durban and he will be confident of hurting the champions once again.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

LAST 10 LEAGUE RESULTS

Season Result Scorers

2020/21 Sundowns 0-0 Arrows

2021/22 Arrows 0-1 Sundowns Sirino

2021/22 Sundowns 6-0 Arrows Sirino, Shalulile 3, Safranko, Erasmus

2022/23 Sundowns 2-1 Arrows Shalulile, Ndlovu (og); Mmodi

2022/23 Arrows 1-1 Sundowns Moon; Mbule

2023/24 Sundowns 4-0 Arrows Shalulile, Nku 2, Kekana

2023/24 Arrows 0-0 Sundowns

2024/25 Sundowns 4-0 Arrows Ribeiro (pen), Shalulile 2, Mokoena

2024/25 Arrows 1-1 Sundowns Phillips; Ribeiro (pen)