Mamelodi Sundowns utility-man Aubrey Modiba is expecting a different Pyramids challenge then their past meetings and admits he’s gained much more experience since his first CAF inter-club final back in 2017.
Modiba, 29, has become a household name in South African football, having first burst onto the scene in the professional ranks with Mpumalanga Black Aces as a teenager, before moving on to SuperSport United, shortly after Aces had been sold for the Cape Town City revival project.
He spent four years at Matsatsansa, where he won the Nedbank Cup, MTN8 and reached the final of the CAF Confederation Cup, losing to TP Mazembe before eventually landing a lucrative switch to Sundowns, where he’s been an ever-present figure for club and country.
“It will be great for us [to win the Champions League], we want to make history in this club as players, we always want to win big trophies, the last final I played at SuperSport, it was my first one, we didn’t have much experience actually,” Modiba recalled.
“We saw how we fell short in that game, right now having played so many Champions League games at Sundowns, right now we understand what it takes to try and win it because it’s been eluding us for so many years, right now we’re on the right track, we just need to make sure we do well in both legs, we need to do well at home.”
Having played Pyramids last season, in what was their first-ever campaign in Africa’s elite club competition, Modiba acknowledges it won’t be the same as they drew 0-0 at home and beat them 1-0 in Cairo in the group stages – citing their evolution of the squad since last season’s meetings.
“We’re expecting a tough game against Pyramids, you have seen what they have done in the Champions League, all the way to the final, they are a great team that does well home and away, we need to apply ourselves, try and win the game, especially at home,” he said.
“I think they have signed quite a few players since we last played them and they have gained more experience in the Champions League, hence they in the final – right now they are a team doing well even in their league, competing with Al Ahly for the league.
“So, it’s a team that has evolved, doing well, gained Champions League experience, so it’s a different team, different coach and different approach from the team we played – they have evolved and are doing well.”
Sundowns host the Egyptian Premier League side for the first leg tie at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday at 15h00.
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