Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Manqoba Mngqithi insists his side will fight “very hard” to overcome their “difficult” opponents in the Caf Champions League group stage as they look to qualify for the next round.

The Brazilians and reigning champions Al Ahly have been drawn in Group A alongside the likes of Sudan outfits Al Hilal and Al Merriekh following the draw at the CAF headquarters.

The six-match group stage campaign is set to begin on the weekend of 11-12 February 2021 where Sundowns will welcome Al Hilal to Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria before facing back-to-back away trips to Sudan and Egypt to take on Al Merrikh and Al Ahly respectively.

The reverse leg of fixtures will begin on the weekend of 11-12 on matchday four with a home fixture against Al Ahly, while matchdays five will see a home game against Al Merrikh before the final round of fixtures sees another trip to North Africa to play Al Hilal in the return leg.

“My impression of the draw will always be the most difficult to comprehend because once you get into the last-16 it’s always difficult to make a choice as to who you would want to play against. All of the teams that are there are probably 75 if not 90% of them have won the Champions League before, so there’s no chance of avoiding anyone,” Mngqithi told his club’s official website.

“The only challenge with the group is that it involves extensive travel to Sudan and that might be the only challenge for us, but you cannot ask for any other team in the Champions League, because if you look at the other groups you will soon realise that they all have stiff competition.

“The group that we are in is a very interesting group, we will fight very hard to pull through. We are confident as the technical team and players that the group that we have is capable of helping us through.”

He continued: “The teams we are playing are all well-coached. Al Ahly are the biggest team in Africa. Al Hilal are one of the most formidable teams in the Champions League — they are always in the group stage, always pushing for the quarter-finals. We haven’t played Al Merrikh but it’s the same story as Sundowns, Chiefs and Pirates in SA when you compare them and Hilal in Sudan.

“No game will be easy and it will demand a lot from the group, but I am very confident in the coaches I work with, as well as the support staff and technical team and more than confident in the players.”