Mamelodi Sundowns forward Tashreeq Matthews is excited about the prospect of playing against his former side, Borussia Dortmund of Germany, in the Fifa Club World Cup.
Matthews, 24, who joined Sundowns from Swedish side Sirius in January 2024, was on the books of Dortmund from November 2018 until November 2020, albeit he only featured for their youth teams. The Brazilians are in Group F of the upcoming Club World Cup alongside Dortmund, Fluminense of Brazil and South Korean side Ulsan, who they face tomorrow (midnight SA time).
“I am excited. It's always exciting for me to play against a former team,'' the midfielder said before departure to the tournament, which kicked off at the weekend in the US.
“Most of the players I played with there [at Dortmund] have since transferred to other teams ... others are on loan to other teams, but the guys that worked there when I was there are still there [referring to backroom staff] and I am still in contact with some of them.”
Matthews didn't hide that it was a let-down to fail to win the CAF Champions League final after losing to Pyramids of Egypt.
“Obviously, it was a disappointment [to lose the final] and a hard defeat to take. But at the end of the day, we have another competition to focus on now,” Matthews said.
“When I arrived at Sundowns, I realised that the team was more about unity ... the brotherhood is amazing and that makes us stronger than we already are.”
Sundowns face Ulsan tomorrow and then Dortmund on Saturday. They conclude their group phase against Fluminense on June 25.
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Matthews excited to face former side Dortmund
Forward played for youth teams of German club
Image: Elsa - FIFA
Mamelodi Sundowns forward Tashreeq Matthews is excited about the prospect of playing against his former side, Borussia Dortmund of Germany, in the Fifa Club World Cup.
Matthews, 24, who joined Sundowns from Swedish side Sirius in January 2024, was on the books of Dortmund from November 2018 until November 2020, albeit he only featured for their youth teams. The Brazilians are in Group F of the upcoming Club World Cup alongside Dortmund, Fluminense of Brazil and South Korean side Ulsan, who they face tomorrow (midnight SA time).
“I am excited. It's always exciting for me to play against a former team,'' the midfielder said before departure to the tournament, which kicked off at the weekend in the US.
“Most of the players I played with there [at Dortmund] have since transferred to other teams ... others are on loan to other teams, but the guys that worked there when I was there are still there [referring to backroom staff] and I am still in contact with some of them.”
Matthews didn't hide that it was a let-down to fail to win the CAF Champions League final after losing to Pyramids of Egypt.
“Obviously, it was a disappointment [to lose the final] and a hard defeat to take. But at the end of the day, we have another competition to focus on now,” Matthews said.
“When I arrived at Sundowns, I realised that the team was more about unity ... the brotherhood is amazing and that makes us stronger than we already are.”
Sundowns face Ulsan tomorrow and then Dortmund on Saturday. They conclude their group phase against Fluminense on June 25.
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