Mamelodi Sundowns have won their second TotalEnergies CAF Champions League title. The South African side held AS FAR of Morocco to a 1-1 draw in the second leg in Rabat on Sunday to complete a 2-1 aggregate victory.
The Brazilians took a slender 1-0 lead into the away leg after Aubrey Modiba’s stunning free-kick won the first leg at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria last weekend.
In front of a near-capacity 60,000 crowd at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Sundowns faced an early onslaught.
The Moroccan champions, chasing their first continental crown since 1985, broke through five minutes before half-time. Divine Lunga was penalised for a foul on Reda Slim, and Mohamed Hrimat coolly sent Williams the wrong way from the spot to level the tie on aggregate.
But Sundowns delivered a sucker punch deep in first-half stoppage time. A cross from Brayan Leon was flicked on by Tashreeq Matthews into the path of Teboho Mokoena inside the box. The midfielder unleashed a thunderous first-time strike that rattled the underside of the crossbar and gave goalkeeper Ahmed Tagnaouti no chance. With the away goals rule still in effect, the Moroccans now needed to score two more goals to lift the trophy.
ALSO READ:
- Cardoso hails brave Mamelodi Sundowns performance despite Club World Cup defeat to Dortmund
- Mamelodi Sundowns crush Remo Stars 5-1 in biggest Nigerian home defeat in years
- CAF Champions League: Pyramids strike late to deny Mamelodi Sundowns in pulsating final
- Remo Stars coach attending CAF course, not sacked โ club clarifies
Williams produces another penalty heroics
The hosts were handed a lifeline in the 77th minute. Williams spilled a low shot from Ahmed Hammoudan and then brought down Youssef El Fahli as he attempted to gather the loose ball. After another VAR review, a second penalty was awarded.
Williams, who saved four penalties in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final shootout against Cape Verde, dived low to his left and parried Hrimat’s effort over the crossbar. The save sapped the energy from the home side and their supporters, who began streaming out of the stadium in the closing stages.
Sundowns substitute, Lebo Mothiba had a late goal ruled out for offside, but the Brazilians comfortably saw out eight minutes of added time.
The victory books Sundowns a place at the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup and earns the club a record $6 million (ยฃ4.49 million) in prize money.
๐ข Stay Updated โ Join Our WhatsApp Channel
๐ฌ Be Part of Our WhatsApp Community
Join our WhatsApp Channel for curated updates, breaking stories, and exclusive insights from our newsroom.
๐ฒ Join ๐ NRTC WhatsApp Channel
