After many years of trying to find the perfect formula to crack the CAF Champions League, Mamelodi Sundowns' number one goalkeeper Ronwen Williams is confident they have got things right as they look to deliver the continental title to Chloorkop this season.
Sundowns will face Pyramids in the two-legged final, with the first leg set to take place at Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria, on Saturday (3pm).
The return leg is on June 1.
Since conquering the continent in 2016, Masandawana have been eliminated in the semifinals or quarterfinals of the competition, but this year, they have managed to reach the final.
“It's amazing for us, this after years of hard work and sacrifice. We've been pushing, we kept grinding and we knew one day, eventually we would knock the door down to get to the final that has been eluding us for such a long time,” Williams told the media yesterday after the new Champions League trophy was revealed in Rosebank, Johannesburg.
“Big credit and kudos to the players for this character to keep going after losing and not making it, yeah, perfect moment for us.
“That's why we come to Mamelodi Sundowns because they are always part and parcel of big tournaments and nothing bigger than the Champions League, especially in Africa.”
Williams feels this is their time to finally lift the trophy and what also motivates them is that they want to become the first team to lift the redesigned cup.
“Now it feels real... it is setting in, it's here now and it is show time. But I'm happy they didn't allow me to touch it because I wouldn't want to touch it before my captain Mshishi [Themba Zwane], he deserves that honour to lift it in the next 10 days or so, but we can't wait to get our hands on it.”
Meanwhile, Sundowns defender Mosa Lebusa highlighted the need to finish the game off in the first leg and emphasised the need to keep a clean sheet at home.
“Any results where we don't concede will be good. We don't want to concede at home because we know that going away, we always have a goal in us,” Lebusa said.
“So, we'll keep them away from our goal and if we get goals, then it will be a bonus for us. Every season, we felt like it was ours, but we couldn't get past the semifinals.”
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After many years of trying to find the perfect formula to crack the CAF Champions League, Mamelodi Sundowns' number one goalkeeper Ronwen Williams is confident they have got things right as they look to deliver the continental title to Chloorkop this season.
Sundowns will face Pyramids in the two-legged final, with the first leg set to take place at Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria, on Saturday (3pm).
The return leg is on June 1.
Since conquering the continent in 2016, Masandawana have been eliminated in the semifinals or quarterfinals of the competition, but this year, they have managed to reach the final.
“It's amazing for us, this after years of hard work and sacrifice. We've been pushing, we kept grinding and we knew one day, eventually we would knock the door down to get to the final that has been eluding us for such a long time,” Williams told the media yesterday after the new Champions League trophy was revealed in Rosebank, Johannesburg.
“Big credit and kudos to the players for this character to keep going after losing and not making it, yeah, perfect moment for us.
“That's why we come to Mamelodi Sundowns because they are always part and parcel of big tournaments and nothing bigger than the Champions League, especially in Africa.”
Williams feels this is their time to finally lift the trophy and what also motivates them is that they want to become the first team to lift the redesigned cup.
“Now it feels real... it is setting in, it's here now and it is show time. But I'm happy they didn't allow me to touch it because I wouldn't want to touch it before my captain Mshishi [Themba Zwane], he deserves that honour to lift it in the next 10 days or so, but we can't wait to get our hands on it.”
Meanwhile, Sundowns defender Mosa Lebusa highlighted the need to finish the game off in the first leg and emphasised the need to keep a clean sheet at home.
“Any results where we don't concede will be good. We don't want to concede at home because we know that going away, we always have a goal in us,” Lebusa said.
“So, we'll keep them away from our goal and if we get goals, then it will be a bonus for us. Every season, we felt like it was ours, but we couldn't get past the semifinals.”
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