Mamelodi Sundowns were stunned in the CAF Super Cup as they fell to a 3-1 defeat to USM Alger at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday afternoon just weeks after being eliminated from the Champions League.
In a fixture where the CAF Champions League winners take on the winners of the CAF Confederaration Cup – they got off to the worst possible start to the fixture.
Before a ball was kicked, Sundowns playmaker Nuno Santos suffered hamstring injury and was replaced in the starting line-up by Cassius Mailula.
USM Alger came out the blocks with purpose, clearly targeting the left-side of Sundowns defence and opened the scoring through veteran midfielder Zakaria Draoui with a simple tap in.
Sundowns fought back and Thabang Matuludi forced a penalty via a handball from USM Alger, which was awarded upon review with Video Assistant Refereeing (VAR).
Iqraam Rayners, who made his way onto the pitch after an early injury to striker Brayan Leoń, in which he was needed to be stretchered off the pitch, stepped up to slot the penalty home.
But the lead lasted just over ten minutes, as Saadi Radouani restored their lead, prodding home a header after a corner kick, where USMA struck the crossbar with a header and the captain was on hand for the rebound.
It sent shockwaves to the home supporters as Masandawana went into the break trailing, but they had a bit more time to re-assess their approach when the resumption of the second half was delayed due to heavy rainfall.
The game was slightly affected by the water left on the pitch for the opening stages of the second half but Sundowns look to take initiative to get back into the game – however, on the counter the visitors struck again.
On the left side of the Sundowns defence, where they looked to make most of their attacks, Ahmed Khaldi curled home a stunner beyond Williams’, leaving the captain with no chance and firmly grabbing control of the game.
It remained that way as USMA secured their second Super Cup title in three years, having beaten Al Ahly in 2023 to the title.