Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Manqoba Mngqithi says they are going to play against “a very formidable Baroka FC side”, who are pushing to get out of the relegation zone.

The Brazilians will travel to the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane for their upcoming DStv Premiership encounter with Bakgaga on Monday evening as they look to secure maximum points.

Sundowns go into this match sitting comfortably at the top of the league standings with 47 from 20 games, while Baroka currently occupies 15th place on the table with only 13 points after 17 matches.

Speaking ahead of the game, Mngqithi singled out two players in Evidence Makgopa and Nhlanhla Mgaga, who he expects to play a prominent role and cause them many problems throughout the match.

“We are playing against a team that usually gives us a hard time, Baroka is a hard-running team with some very industrious players such as [Evidence] Makgopa and [Nhlanhla] Mgaga. It has always been a little bit tough to play against Baroka, we are playing against a very formidable side,” Mngqithi told his club’s official website.

“If you remember at the [end of last year] they lost against Stellenbosch but they created five or six chances in that match, and then they went to Stellenbosch and got a result in a territory that is very hostile and difficult to play in.

“I wouldn’t really anticipate fatigue at this stage from this group, but we are going in for a very big fight, they are pushing to get out of the relegation zone so, naturally, they will be intrinsically motivated to try and give everything in this match.

“We are not entitled to win a match of this nature, we must first match the fight. If we can match the fight then we believe that talent-wise we’ve got what it takes to pull through and get the result that we want.”