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Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana is disappointed to have lost in the
quarter-finals of the Club World Cup, but says it's been a good learning
experience nonetheless.
The Chloorkop based-outfit are preparing for a fifth-place play-off against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, after going down 2-0 to Kashima Antlers in the quarter-finals.
Kekana eluded to the fact that Sundowns dominated both the possession stakes and opportunities created in the loss to Antlers, and said they will look to rectify their performance in front of goal.
"As much as we are disappointed by the loss to the Japanese club, we took a lot of positives from that match," he told The Star.
"This is another level of football. You must take your chances.
"You need to be ruthless in front of goals at this level. If I look back at how we played, I am not unhappy with the performance. I am just unhappy that we didn’t score.
"The Japanese would agree with me when I say that we were the better team, we played them off the park. But that doesn’t count. What counts is who put the ball at the back of the net.
"These games will empower us.
"We are at a level where we have set the bar for other South African teams.
"It’s really important to play with good intensity. We will come out on top against the Asian champions if we do that. Our aim is to make sure that the world sees South African football with a different eye.
"We saw that we aren’t really far (away) as Africans. We can go toe-to-toe with the best in the world. We just need to take our chances. That’s the only aspect that’s letting us down."
