Ronwen Williams has pinpointed a crucial weakness in Mamelodi Sundowns' FIFA Club World Cup campaign.
The Masandawana goalkeeper's insights come after his side's exit from the tournament, which saw them draw 0-0 with Fluminense in their final group stage match.
Despite a promising start with a 1-0 victory over Ulsan HD, the Brazilians then suffered a 4-3 defeat to Borussia Dortmund, ultimately finishing third in their group with four points from three games.
Williams commended Sundowns’ overall performance with their possession dominance but stated that their problem was the conversion rate.
WILLIAMS HIGHLIGHTS ‘CONVERTION RATE’ AS SUNDOWNS ISSUE
“We have picked up it’s the efficiency [that is the difference], they don’t need a lot of chances to hurt you, we saw today the half chance they got, they hit the post, so they wait for the moment to hurt you,” Williams said.
“For us on the other side, we had so many chances throughout the tournament and our efficiency, our conversion rate is probably not the best but I’m just proud of the boys for the effort, the fight and the ability to play our own football.
“It’s what we proud of, people thought we would come here and be defensive but no we played our football, so I’m proud of the boys, there’s a lot of lessons to take definitely.
“We can only be proud… we have put Sundowns and South African football on the map, people will take a keen interest now.”
He continued, “Before we came here, our objective was four points and we thought it would be enough, normally it’s enough, but it wasn’t to be – you know. We know where we let ourselves down was the Dortmund game.”
“We’re so disappointed, but also proud of the achievement, we came here with an objective. We wanted to go to the next round, it wasn’t to be, but the ability to play our football, compete and show we can compete at this level, it’s amazing.”
