Mamelodi Sundowns have their biggest test yet at the FIFA Club World Cup as they are set to take on German giants Borussia Dortmund on Saturday.
Sundowns will be on the hunt for three more points which will leave them top of Group F and in pole position to make it to the Round of 16 after opening their campaign with a 1-0 victory against Ulsan HD on Wednesday.
Dortmund coach Niko Kovac has admitted his team are favourites in Group F and after a goalless draw against Fluminense on Tuesday, pressure is on them to win.
As Sundowns prepare for the top clash, who are the Dortmund players likely to give them a hard time?
Serhou Guirassy
Guinea forward Serhou Guirassy will be the main man upfront as Dortmund go in search of a win and his numbers suggest Sundowns have their work cut out, as he has netted 34 goals in 46 games across all competitions, after his €45 million move from Stuttgart last summer.
Guirassy was kept quiet by Thiago Silva against Fluminense but he will not want another horror show, meaning Sundowns will need more than one player to keep him away from causing havoc.
Karim Adeyemi
Former Dortmund forward Delron Buckley has already singled out Karim Adeyemi as the man Sundowns must watch out the most as the German winger can be a handful for opposition defenders.
Blessed with pace, trickery, ability to beat his markers in one-on-one situations, Adeyemi, who has scored 12 goals and provided nine assists this season, will be hard to mark as he constantly shifts wings and also drops into the No.10 position to act as a second striker or creative force.
Pascal Gross
In his first season back in Germany after seven years in the Premier League with Brighton and Hove Albion, German midfielder Pascal Gross has had a significant impact.
Gross is one of the two midfielders in the 3-4-3 system preferred by Kovac and he is the man who is afforded more license to go forward, acting as the link between defence and attack, yielding an incredible 15 assists this season, having also scored one goal, and Sundowns have to neutralise him at all costs.
Niklas Sule
One of the senior players in the Dortmund squad, the Frankfurt-born centre-back brings vast experience gathered in four years at Hoffenheim, five at Bayern Munich and now three at Dortmund.
Sule might not be the quickest but his reading of the game is impressive, knows when to make tackles, is good with the ball at his feet and his big frame makes him an asset when defending or attacking a set-piece.
He was the most outstanding Dortmund player against Fluminense and will likely have a huge influence on proceedings again on Saturday but the Sundowns attackers have to find a way to get past him.
Jobe Bellingham
The new Bellingham set to don the famous yellow and black of Dortmund, Jobe is following in the footsteps of his brother Jude Bellingham, who joined the club as a 17-year-old and went on to light up the Signal Iduna Park, before securing a big-money transfer to Real Madrid two years ago.
Jude has just signed for Dortmund in the mini-transfer window set aside for Club World Cup teams, after playing a part in Sunderland’s return to the Premier League with four goals and three assists from central midfield.
Bellingham was a 59th-minute substitute against Fluminense and will be hoping for a first start against Sundowns. If he does, the Brazilians can expect a strong and athletic player who does not easily lose possession and keeps attacks at bay.
