No love lost as Zwane fires up Sundowns for Al-Ahli battle

PRETORIA – The respect will be there. The friendship can wait.

That is the message from Mamelodi Sundowns captain Themba “Mshishi” Zwane as the African champions prepare to face Al-Ahli Saudi FC at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

“Obviously, no love lost. We still maintain the respect, but we’re going there for the kill,” Zwane said.

Sundowns are well aware of the quality they will face, with Al-Ahli boasting a squad packed with international stars, including former Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

Zwane and several of his Sundowns teammates know Mendy from their encounters with Senegal at the Africa Cup of Nations. While Zwane has praised the goalkeeper’s contribution to African football, the admiration will be put aside when the two sides meet.

A place in the next stage at stake

The match forms part of the second round of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, with Sundowns making their first appearance in the competition.

The winners will lift a trophy, collect medals and pocket US$2 million, while the runners-up receive medals and half of the winners’ prize money.

Victory would also secure a place in the Challenger Cup. The eventual winner of that stage advances along a path that leads to the Derby of the Americas winner before a potential meeting with European champions Paris Saint-Germain in the final.

If the match is level after 90 minutes, extra time will be played.

Sundowns goalkeeper Ronwen Williams, who wears the captain’s armband when Zwane is not on the field, summed up the stakes simply.

“The winner takes all,” Williams said.

Sundowns have unfinished business

There is also a wider African storyline behind the fixture.

Sundowns lost the 2025 CAF Champions League final to Egypt’s Pyramids 3-2 on aggregate. Pyramids subsequently travelled to Jeddah in September 2025 and defeated Al-Ahli 3-1 in this same stage of the Intercontinental Cup, with Fiston Mayele scoring a hat-trick.

Sundowns will now attempt to produce a similar result against the Saudi champions.

The South Africans earned their place in the competition by winning a second CAF Champions League title in May, 10 years after their first.

That made Sundowns the first South African club to win the continental title twice.

Williams played a key role in the decisive second leg in Rabat, saving a second-half penalty as Sundowns secured the trophy.

The triumph came in the same week that Sundowns lost the domestic league title to Orlando Pirates, ending their run of eight consecutive league championships.

Loftus advantage

Sundowns will also have home conditions on their side.

Since Miguel Cardoso took charge in December 2024, Sundowns have lost only once at Loftus Versfeld. That defeat came against Kaizer Chiefs in the MTN8 semi-final in April 2025.

They remain unbeaten at home in the league, sit top of the Betway Premiership and are still unbeaten domestically this season.

The altitude and a packed Loftus crowd could provide another challenge for Al-Ahli. About 51,000 spectators watched Sundowns’ first leg against Pyramids in the Champions League final at the stadium in May.

Cardoso, however, is taking nothing for granted.

He has described Al-Ahli as a powerhouse but insists the size of the Saudi club’s budget will not determine what happens on the pitch.

“Budgets don’t play,” Cardoso said.

Sundowns enter the match after a 1-1 draw against Chippa United last Saturday in difficult conditions, with the game played on a waterlogged pitch following a late venue change.

Antonio van Wyk rescued a point with an injury-time equaliser.

Khuliso Mudau, Keanu Cupido and Arthur Sales are unavailable through injury, while new signings Deano van Rooyen, Thabang Matuludi and Thabo Cele are ineligible after joining after FIFA’s squad-registration deadline.

Al-Ahli arrive with pedigree

Al-Ahli arrive in South Africa as back-to-back Asian champions.

They beat Japan’s Machida Zelvia 1-0 after extra time in Jeddah in April, despite playing almost an hour with 10 men, to become the first club since Al-Ittihad in 2005 to win consecutive Asian titles.

Their squad includes Mendy, Roger Ibañez, Merih Demiral, Galeno, Francisco Trincão and England striker Ivan Toney.

But the team that arrives at Loftus is not exactly the same side that conquered Asia in April.

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Marino Pusic replaced Matthias Jaissle, who left to join Newcastle United, and has signed a contract until 2028.

Al-Ahli currently sit sixth in their domestic league and have won two of their last five matches.

They reached Pretoria after beating Auckland FC 1-0 in Jeddah on 26 August.

The individual battles should add another layer to the contest.

Sundowns striker Brayan León will come up against Toney, while Williams will finally face Mendy, a goalkeeper he has followed for years but never previously played against.

More than a dozen players across the two squads featured at this year’s World Cup, including Williams, Aubrey Modiba, Teboho Mokoena, Iqraam Rayners and Zwane for Sundowns.

Zwane still has the hunger

At 37, Zwane remains one of the central figures in the Sundowns dressing room.

He joined the club from Vardos FC in 2011 and has since won two CAF Champions League titles and nine league crowns.

His career was interrupted by an Achilles tendon rupture suffered while on Bafana Bafana duty in October 2024, but he returned to competitive football as a substitute against Al-Ahli in the 2025 Champions League semi-final.

He signed a contract extension until 2027 in May and was part of the Bafana squad at this year’s World Cup.

Throughout the week, Zwane has been reminding younger players, including Kutlwano Lethlaku and Van Wyk, of the significance of the occasion and what another trophy could mean for Sundowns.

Age has done little to diminish his appetite for competition.

“Football is in my blood. When I wake up, I still feel fire, that hunger to train, to compete.”

Sundowns waited a decade to add a second continental star to their badge.

Now they have another chance to add a major international trophy to their collection, but first they must overcome an Al-Ahli side that arrives in Pretoria as Asia’s reigning champion.

Kick-off is at 15:00 at Loftus Versfeld, with the match live on SuperSport.