“The Race Is Still On”: Lunga Breaks Silence As Sundowns On
Mamelodi Sundowns defender Devine Lunga insists the Brazilians remain composed and fully focused ahead of their pivotal Betway Premiership clash against Siwelele at Loftus Versfeld Stadium this Saturday.
The defending champions enter the encounter needing a definitive response following a frustrating 1-1 midweek draw against Kaizer Chiefs. That stalemate handed Masandawana’s title aspirations a significant blow, reopening a race that Sundowns had hoped to kill off weeks ago.
Despite the slip-up, Sundowns remain atop the Premiership standings with 65 points and two matches left to play. However, the pressure is mounting; Orlando Pirates sit second on 62 points with three fixtures remaining, meaning the Buccaneers now mathematically control their own destiny.
Sundowns are chasing an unprecedented ninth consecutive league title, but head coach Miguel Cardoso recently admitted that the trophy is no longer entirely in their hands. Success now depends on a flawless finish and potentially a favor from Pirates’ upcoming opponents.
Lunga, however, maintains that the dressing room is not panicking.
“The boys are in a good mood even though we didn’t get the result we wanted against Chiefs,” said Lunga.
“We are now focusing on the game against Siwelele, and I think we will do our best to collect maximum points. The race is still on — there’s nothing unusual about it — and we are going to take it one game at a time, which is what we always do.
“As Sundowns, we don’t need to put ourselves under pressure, but we do need to focus on winning our matches. Taking it one game at a time has worked well for us for a long time, and we can’t change that approach now.”
Lunga also warned that Siwelele would present a difficult challenge, especially with teams eager to finish the season strongly.
“Siwelele have been performing well in recent matches, so we are not expecting an easy game, especially with the league nearing its end,” he added.
“We respect every team because there are no small teams in this league, and we give all of them the respect they deserve.
“As I said, Siwelele have been doing well, so we know it will be a tough contest because they will fight hard. We are ready, and we will bring our A-game to try and collect maximum points.”
After the Siwelele clash, Sundowns will travel to Mpumalanga for their final league fixture against TS Galaxy on Tuesday. The last time Sundowns visited Galaxy, they suffered a 2-0 defeat in the Nedbank Cup as the Rockets knocked them out of the competition.
