Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane is relieved to have five days off to prepare for their Caf Champions League encounter with Petro de Luanda on Saturday.

The Brazilians currently sit top of Group C with 10 points after four matches at this stage of the competition.

Sundowns come into this game after edging USM Alger 2-1 at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in the previous Group C encounter.

With no midweek fixture, Mosimane and his side were afforded a few days off to properly prepare for their clash in Angola.

‘To be honest, it has been a little bit of a relief to have five days before the match to prepare, normally we have two-and-a-half or three days to prepare,’ Mosimane told his club’s official website.

‘Five days help us to really get rest and prepare properly. We arrived, the hotel is OK, the training pitch is OK. Usually we struggle with training pitches, but our advance team has done a very good job.

‘We were a little bit cold in Algeria in December, now we are here in Angola and it’s hot – 32 degrees and there is humidity, you can see in our pictures. We have to make sure they are not dehydrated. But the players have to adjust, we have no excuse.’

Mosimane also welcomes back Ricardo Nascimento, Anthony Laffor and Phakamani Mahlambi, while he revealed they are monitoring Thapelo Morena ahead of their continental clash.

‘We are only managing Thapelo and his groin. The good thing is that Ricardo Nascimento is back as an additional player in the team, but we still have injuries to Rivaldo Coetzee, Oupa Manyisa, Aubrey Ngoma,’ he added.

‘Another positive thing is that Anthony Laffor is pain free and training and is now ready to be selected for this game as well as upcoming games. We are getting a few players back, we’ve also got Phakamani back now, so the squad is starting to get its shape and we’re hoping that Mauricio Affonso will be back soon.’

The match at Estadio 11 de Novembro kicks off at 3pm.