Pretoria-Mamelodi Sundowns have received a major boost ahead of their clash against Jomo Cosmos following the return of midfield strongman Esrom Nyandoro (pictured). The influential Zimbabwean missed the league match against Platinum Stars due to suspension after collection his third yellow card of the season against Bloemfontein Celtic, which earned him an automatic one-match suspension.
Nyandoros return will stabilise the team following the unexpected 2-0 defeat against Platinum Stars on Wednesday, said club spokesperson Alex Shakoane.
His absence was felt as Downs continued with their inconsistent displays on Wednesday. The Brazilians have had a bag of mixed results this season and are yet to strike the right note, having won four league games, drawn four and lost four. As a result of this, they slumped to eighth on the log with only 16 points which is six adrift the current league leaders, SuperSport United.
They host a Cosmos side that is rooted to the bottom of the Absa Premiership with only nine points from their 12 games thus far. They have managed to do better of late, having drawn their last three league games. Cosmos last match saw them play to an exciting 3-3 draw against Bloemfontein Celtic.
The two teams have quite an extensive history against one another having faced each other in 44 official league matches since 1985. Of those 44 games Sundowns have earned more victories than their counterparts. The Brazilians have won 16 matches while Cosmos have won 13.
The last time the two came face to face in the league as in the 2007/08 season. In the corresponding fixture that season they played to a 2-2 draw, but the Brazilians picked up the three points in the reverse fixture with a 1-0 win.
Post published in: Football