Mamelodi Sundowns’ iconic goalkeeper, Ronwen Williams, expressed his disappointment at not being drawn against English champions Manchester City in the FIFA Club World Cup group stage.

The draw, conducted on Thursday, placed Sundowns in Group F alongside German giants Borussia Dortmund, Brazilian side Fluminense, and South Korean club Ulsan Hyundai FC. Manchester City, meanwhile, was drawn in Group G with Juventus, Wydad Casablanca, and Al Ain FC.

Given their seeding in Pot 4, Sundowns were almost guaranteed to face top-tier teams like Real Madrid, City, or Chelsea. Nonetheless, Williams shared his thoughts on a potential matchup against City:

“It would have been nice if we got Manchester City,” said Williams, who is rated as one of the top 10 goalkeepers in the world. 

“Because my son is a big supporter of them, and I also love the football that they play and it would have been nice to face them. But, in saying that, I’m very happy with the draw. 

“But it is nice that we have some teams that we are familiar with like Fluminense. We have similar traits in our build-up, in the way that they play, it is similar structures. 

“We used a lot of their clips; we have studied of their build-ups. And to see Borussia Dortmund, I know there is someone in our camp that will be extremely happy with which is Tashreeq Matthews because he played for Dortmund. 

“So, that would be good for him, and also from Korea (Ulsan), they play quick fast football. Overall, we are happy, we are excited and we can’t wait for the Club World Cup to start.”  

This will be Sundowns’ second appearance at the FIFA Club World Cup. In 2016, they finished sixth, losing to Kashima Antlers 2-0 in the quarter-finals, before losing to South Korean side Jeonbuk Motors, with Percy Tau scoring a blinding goal on that occasion that proved to be the consolation for them in the fifth playoff match. Williams, who joined Sundowns in 2022, was not part of that squad.

The Bafana Bafana captain, who recently helped South Africa win the bronze medal at the Africa Cup of Nations, expressed his pride in seeing Sundowns among the world’s best clubs:

“To see the name of Mamelodi Sundowns up there with the best of the best, I got such goosebumps,” reacted Williams, who is in camp for Sundowns for the CAF Champions League match against FAR Rabat of Morocco on Saturday (21:00). 

“Once our name came on the screen; it is just an amazing achievement for the club and we are currently in camp in Morocco preparing our Champions League game. 

“It was nice to see all the players together to watch the draw and we saw the reaction we all got once our name was up on the screen.”