Mamelodi Sundowns cruise past Spurs to 11th straight Premiership win
Mamelodi Sundowns cruised to an 11th successive DStv Premiership victory, beating last-placed Cape Town Spurs 3-0 at Loftus Versfeld on Wednesday night to maintain their record-breaking 100% start to the league season.
Goals from Sipho Mbule (23rd minute) and Grant Kekana (29th) gave the Brazilians a 2-0 lead at the break in a game they dominated against the hapless rookies who are bottom of the table after winning one and losing 13 matches in the 14 they have played.
Mbule opened the scoring with a scorcher of a shot just outside the area before Kekana finished off a loose ball in the area after a corner was not cleared by Spurs' defence.
Peter Shalulile (90th) completed the rout, finishing Lebogang Maboe's cross on the stroke of full time.
Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena made wholesale changes to his usual starting line-up, giving players like Mbule, Maboe, Rushine de Reuck, Gaston Sirino, Lesiba Nku, Nasir Abubaker, Terrence Mashego and goalkeeper and skipper Denis Onyango rare starts.
Sundowns win by three goals to nil against Cape Town Spurs 👏
— SuperSport Football ⚽️ (@SSFootball) December 13, 2023
Peter Shalulile scores his 84th goal since the 2020/2 season 💥
Elsewhere, AmaZulu beat Sekhukhune by a goal to nil in KwaZulu-Natal ✅#DStvPrem pic.twitter.com/m1lieV8DFY
Ernst Middendorp's side simply had no answer to Sundowns as they cheaply gave possession away and had difficulty containing the Brazilians.
Like they've done in many of their matches this season, Sundowns were content managing their lead in the second half, not attacking Spurs as they had in the first half. Of the 23 goals Sundowns have scored in the league this season, only seven have come in the second half as they normally bulldoze their opponents in the opening minutes of their matches.
Masandawna are on course for the earliest capture of the league title — which will be their record seventh in succession. The Brazilians won the league with seven matches to go last season, which was the record earliest in the Premier Soccer League era.
Cape Town City, the second-placed team on the log and Sundowns' next opponents in the league, may be the team to give Sundowns the sternest test this season. The match will be played in Cape Town on December 24.