Ahead of what is arguably his biggest challenge as Al Ahly coach, Pitso Mosimane has bemoaned his side's domestic schedule as they prepare to take on his former side Mamelodi Sundowns, who he has described as a monster.
Mosimane has been under the cosh in Cairo, with his side delivering some sub-standard performances in recent times, particularly in the Egyptian Premier League, where they trail leaders Zamalek by four points, albeit with two games in hand.
The two sides faced off in a fierce top-of-the-table clash on Monday night which ended in a one-all stalemate, something that Mosimane would have rather avoided, especially with a rampant Sundowns coming to town for the CAF Champions League quarterfinals.
After the match, Mosimane heaped praise on the side where he spent eight successful years as head coach, before questioning the Egyptian Premier League regarding his side's congested schedule.
"Sundowns are a good team, I created a monster and it's here to bite me. It's okay, it's football. I saw Pep (Guardiola) playing against Barcelona when he was at Bayern (Munich) and he lost to Barcelona, I hope I don't lose to Sundowns," Mosimane told journalists.
"But ja, they are resting, we are playing so what does it mean to you? For me, if I had my way, because Ahly is the only team that is playing CAF Champions League representing Egypt, we would protect Ahly if I was Egypt. We don't put the game of Zamalek, most especially when Sundowns are pushing their games back. We didn't even rest but it's the way it is in Egypt so hopefully, but one day more, one day less, it doesn't really mean that we will lose the pressure. But, yes of course the conditions are different, but we just see that we dropped a little bit in the end but it's the program, the schedule of Egypt," the coach said.
Al Ahly will take on Sundowns at the Cairo international Stadium on Saturday, with the match scheduled for 21:00.
Check out images of 9 Sundowns players who have contracts ending in June:
