Mngqithi gets revenge on Sundowns as Arrows hand PSL champions first league loss

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Mngqithi gets revenge on Sundowns as Arrows hand PSL champions first league loss

Manqoba Mngqithi got his revenge on Mamelodi Sundowns when he masterminded the first defeat for the PSL champions.

Mngqithi saw his Golden Arrows secure their first win over Sundowns in over five years as they emerged victorious at the King Zwelithini Stadium on Wednesday thanks to Junior Dion’s 30th minute header.

Arrows took the game to Sundowns on the rain-soaked pitch and should have won by more were it not for some poor decision-making in the final third and a couple of late brilliant saves from Ronwen Williams.

Mngqithi made life difficult for his ex-team as he employed a high pressing game that limited Sundowns while using long balls to bypass Miguel Cardoso’s team in midfield.

Sundowns undone by set-piece, again!

That yielded a number of set-pieces and it is from one that Arrows got the lead. From a corner, Dion jumped highest to head past Williams as Sundowns’ poor defending on set plays let them down once more.

From then, the home side stayed compact and frustrated Sundowns, who could not string passes together as they are known to, while they lacked the cutting edge in attack.

Peter Shalulile cut a lonely figure for Sundowns upfront while Tashreeq Matthews and Arthur Sales were not given a sniff of the ball by the Arrows defenders.

Cardoso was forced to make changes in the second half, bringing in new signings Nuno Santos, who was unveiled on Monday, and Katlego Ntsabeleng as well as Mothobi Mvala and Lebo Mothiba in an attempt to get a tune out of his team.

Cardoso’s changes fail to yield dividends

It was an interesting tactic when Mvala played upfront, supporting Mothiba, while Santos pulled the strings just behind.

Mvala, a central defender by trade, nearly teed up Mothiba for the leveler as he headed into his path but the striker saw his effort saved by the outstretched leg of Arrows goalkeeper Thakasani Mbanjwa.

On the other end, Williams was forced to make two great saves to keep the score at 1-0 as Arrows launched two quick counterattacks in the final minutes of the game.

Defeat leaves Sundowns second on the log with 18 points after nine games, one behind leaders Sekhukhune United, who have two games in hand, and five ahead of third-placed Kaizer Chiefs, who have played three games less.

<!-- Author Start -->Joel Oliver<!-- Author End -->

Joel Oliver

Author

Joel Oliver is a seasoned multimedia sports journalist with a rich background in covering diverse football stories and events in South Africa and beyond.
His extensive coverage spans subjects touching on the PSL, with a focus on the Big Three (Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs & Mamelodi Sundowns), Bafana Bafana and Banyana Banyana.

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