A Statement Response After the Golden Arrows Defeat
Sundowns needed a big reaction after losing to Golden Arrows at the weekend. Got exactly that at Loftus Versfeld. Signs of what was coming showed up early too — Cassius Mailula unleashed a powerful strike inside the opening minutes, forced a superb save out of Wilfried Kouassi. Good news off the bench as well: Teboho Mokoena back in the squad for the first time since opening day.
Floodgates opened just after the quarter-hour mark. Brayan León broke the deadlock in the 25th minute, genuine scorcher in the chilly Pretoria air. Seven minutes later, Teboho Mokoena doubles it with a superb free-kick — perfect way to mark his return from injury. Sundowns were flying at that point, and AmaZulu, missing their first-choice keeper and running a patched-up defense, had no answer in the first 45.
Ngwenya Keeps Fighting, But Sundowns Pull Clear Again
AmaZulu didn’t fold, though. Thando Ngwenya pulled one back right at the start of the second half, 2-1, gave the visitors something to work with. Sundowns answered fast — Tashreeq Matthews on the scoresheet himself in the 51st, 3-1 again. León completed his own brace in the 66th, 4-1, and the game looked done.
Ngwenya wasn’t finished, though. Three minutes later, brilliant strike from an impossibly tight angle, 4-2, kept the visitors’ hopes alive a little longer. That was as close as it got. Deep into stoppage time, Bennet Mokoena finishes off a Matthews assist inside the box, right foot, 5-2. First goal of his Sundowns career. Perfect way to cap off a genuinely wild night in front of the Yellow Nation.
What It Means Next
Big response for Miguel Cardoso’s side, bouncing straight back from the MTN8 semi-final loss, moving level on points with the pack at the top of a genuinely congested early table. For AmaZulu, unbeaten coming in and level with Sundowns on seven points beforehand, rough night against a side that’s now won 28 of 42 all-time meetings between these two clubs — a rivalry Usuthu have never really had an answer for.
Match Summary
Mamelodi Sundowns 5-2 AmaZulu Betway Premiership, Matchday 4 — Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria, South Africa Wednesday, 26 August 2026
Goals: 25′ Brayan León (Mamelodi Sundowns) 1-0 32′ Teboho Mokoena (Mamelodi Sundowns) 2-0 (free-kick) 46′ Thando Ngwenya (AmaZulu) 2-1 51′ Tashreeq Matthews (Mamelodi Sundowns) 3-1 66′ Brayan León (Mamelodi Sundowns) 4-1 69′ Thando Ngwenya (AmaZulu) 4-2 90+1′ Bennet Mokoena (Mamelodi Sundowns) 5-2 (assist: Tashreeq Matthews)
Result: Mamelodi Sundowns thrash AmaZulu 5-2 in a goal-heavy clash, bouncing back from their MTN8 defeat to Golden Arrows.
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