Bafana Bafana legend Doctor Khumalo has revealed Mamelodi Sundowns missing link in their match against Pyramids.
The two sides played to a 1-1 draw in the CAF Champions League final at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria on Saturday afternoon.
Lucas Ribeiro had put the Tshwane giants ahead early in the second-half, but Walid El Karti’s 94th-minute equaliser denied Sundowns a first-leg lead.
Khumalo says Sundowns missed Themba Zwane’s creativity. He believes the Bafana star could have helped Masandawana build up from the back.
‘THEY NEEDED HIM TO DICTATE THE TEMPO’
“I think this is the result they wanted,” he stated on SABC3 as quoted by iDiski Times.
“I said the last minute of the game which is a critical phase, you’re going to see the changes that Pyramids made.
“What they did first half, they were quick to go forward with two to three players touching the ball. With Sundowns there is six or seven touches.
“Now, second half what they did is not to allow Sundowns to build from the back as usual, they neutralised a certain number of players that they thought could be a danger to them.
“Sundowns needed a player that could dictate the tempo of the match and that positional play because they are leading. So giving possession away is dangerous, keeping it defending. So they’re defending in terms of they are leading, Pyramids is chasing the game.
“But who is in the middle for them to be able to do that. They needed a Themba Zwane who will be able to have that tiki-taka combinational play.”
