Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena believes the group of players at his disposal will eventually win the Caf Champions League title.

The Brazilians ended their Caf Champions League group stages on a positive note after they defeated Coton Sport 2-1 to earn their progression to the quarter-finals.

Sundowns finished at the summit of Group B with a total of 14 points from six matches thanks to an own goal by Mohamadou Issa and a goal by Abubeker Nasser at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria.

Mokwena went on to praise his players for their ambitions in the Champions League, especially after ringing changes to his squad as a result of the international break.

“[It was] A difficult game against a good opponent. A team that even though they didn’t have much to play for they still put up a brave fight and worked really, really hard and [tried] their best to represent their people and their country.

“Congratulations to Mamelodi Sundowns Football Club for qualifying to the quarter-finals and congratulations to the players, the technical staff, and everybody associated with the club.

“It’s tough, especially when you have so many internationals because you don’t have a lot of time to work on preparations but that’s why we work so hard during the training sessions that are available.

“As you know, we only received the Bafana Bafana players on Thursday for training. Brian [Onyango] was only back on Thursday and they couldn’t do much because they arrived almost close to midnight. That’s Thursday gone and it’s matchday -1 on Friday, we couldn’t have most of them.

“We are moving into a space where we have to be fair and patient with this group. It’s a group that shows lots of promise, and it’s a group that has to be given fair opportunities to be able to make their own mark, write their own history and create their own legacy in the club.

“I strongly believe that this team will eventually win the Champions League. When will it happen? I can’t play God, but I know that everyday we work towards this objective and we put in the work.”