Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena is confident his side will advance past the group stages of the Caf Champions League.

The Brazilians were drawn in a tough Group B alongside the likes of rivals Egypt’s Al Ahly, Al Hilal Omdurman from Sudan and Coton Sport FC from Cameroon.

Sundowns are set to face Al-Hilal in their opening group stages fixture which is scheduled for 11 February 2023.

Mokwena believes that their fixture against Al Ahly is always one of the biggest matches in the competition, especially after they were drawn in the same group for the second consecutive year running.

“Firstly we have to recognise that there’s a lot of difficult teams that have made it into the Group Stages of the Champions League and over the years it has become a tough competition for all teams,” Mokwena told his club’s official website.

“There is familiarity in the draw with regards to the teams from the group that we had in 2021.

“The number one goal we have is to come out of the group stages strong, get as many points as we can to qualify and make it to the knock-out stages. We fortunately already have our analysts working around the clock to gather as much information as they can [and] because over the years Sundowns versus Al-Ahly has become a big fixture, we expect the games to be more strategic and tactical.”

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