USM Alger coach Lamine Ndiaye has explained how his team managed to beat Mamelodi Sundowns in the CAF Super Cup final at Loftus Versfeld, while also praising the Brazilians as the best club in Africa.

The Algerian side produced an impressive performance to defeat Sundowns and lift the CAF Super Cup trophy, adding another major achievement to their recent success on the continent.

Ndiaye, who is one of the experienced coaches in African football, knows what it takes to win major competitions. The Senegalese coach previously guided TP Mazembe to CAF Champions League success and also led the Congolese club to the FIFA Club World Cup final, where they finished as runners-up.

Since arriving at USM Alger, he has continued to build his reputation by helping the club win the CAF Confederation Cup and now the Super Cup.

The victory over Sundowns was particularly important because of the quality of the opposition. The Pretoria-based side have been one of the most consistent teams in African football in recent years and have regularly competed for major continental honours.

Despite recognising Sundowns' quality, Ndiaye made it clear that his team travelled to South Africa with the intention of winning rather than simply participating in the final.

“Sundowns is the best team in Africa, they have been so consistent and play very good football, but we came here not just to play, we play finals to win, we did that,” Ndiaye said.

The coach also explained some of the tactical decisions that helped his team overcome the Brazilians.

USM Alger used a 4-4-2 formation, with the intention of preventing Sundowns from comfortably building attacks from the back. Ndiaye wanted his players to press the home side and put them under pressure when they attempted to play through the lines.

However, he admitted that two players who had recently returned from injury could not be pushed too hard with the pressing demands of the match.

“We played a 4-4-2 to try and stop Sundowns to play out from defence, we wanted to press them, but we had two players coming from injury who we couldn’t force them to press,” he explained.

Ndiaye also revealed that his technical team had identified opportunities to punish Sundowns when they lost possession in midfield. His players were instructed to take advantage of those moments and attack quickly during transitions.

That approach proved effective, as USM Alger managed to take their opportunities while Sundowns failed to convert theirs.

“We know they could lose the ball in midfield, and we try to capitalise on that transitions, we buried the chances we got,” he added.

The Algerian club will now turn its attention to the CAF Confederation Cup group stage after the international break. They have been placed in Group D alongside AS Bamako, Red Bulls and CS Sfaxien.

For Ndiaye, the Super Cup triumph provides another major achievement, while his comments also underline the respect Sundowns continue to receive across African football despite their defeat.

Source: IDiskiTimes