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Cape Town - Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane feels his team's exit from the Nedbank Cup could be a blessing in disguise as they go all out for the Absa Premiership and CAF Champions League trophies.
Mosimane's team suffered a 2-1 loss to Chippa United in the Nedbank Cup on Saturday with Frederic Nsabiyumva making sure the Chilli Boys reach the last 16 with a goal in the dying minutes.
Sundowns have a league fixture on Tuesday, against Amazulu, before a huge Caf Champions League clash against Ivory Coast giants ASEC Mimosas on Friday.
Mosimane said on Supersport after the defeat against Chippa: "We have to congratulate them, they also wanted it.
"But the positive side out of this that, I thought we were going to run out of legs.
"I was a little bit worried about going to extra time because I have a game on Tuesday [against] AmaZulu and [another] game on Friday [against] ASEC Mimosas.
"But to be honest what I'm happy about is the mental strength of the players, the will to win because we were stronger at the end."
Competing on many fronts, Sundowns made as many as six changes to the starting line up from their last clash, with the likes of Andile Jale, Gaston Sirino, Rivaldo Coetzee and Phakamani Mahlambi being drafted into the side.
Mosimane said he has to rotate his squad as they compete for multiple trophies.
The Sundowns mentor continued: "We kept going and going and I thought at this point in time [latter stages of the game] it was going to be like Highlands where they are pushing us at the back.
"So it shows the mind was right, the will was right. A good heart, what can I say, they wanted to win.
"I'm happy that everyone can see, in as much as it was our sixth game in 19 days we still going. I like the spirit, I like the mentality. We should just accept, they won the game.
"The positive is that it takes four games away from us [road to the final] and gives us a little bit of a breather in the league and the [CAF] Champions League because the programme is hectic. You can't have everything, you got to also accept that other teams have an opportunity."
