CAF Super Cup Week: Sundowns and USM Alger Prepare for Pretoria Showdown

Mamelodi Sundowns and USM Alger have entered the final week of preparations for Sunday’s CAF Super Cup showdown at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria.

The one-off final will be played on 8 November at 15:00 SAST, bringing together the reigning CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup winners.

Sundowns qualified after beating Morocco’s AS FAR 2-1 on aggregate to win their second Champions League title, while USM Alger arrive as Confederation Cup champions.

Both clubs head into Super Cup week on the back of victories.

Sundowns beat Durban City 4-1 in the Betway Premiership on Saturday, while USM Alger secured an impressive 2-0 away victory over CS Constantine in Algeria.

USM Alger are expected to leave Algeria for South Africa on Tuesday evening, with their travelling party set to arrive via Johannesburg ahead of the trip to Pretoria.

The Algerians will, however, be without forward Houssam Eddine Ghacha, who is receiving treatment in Qatar for a knee problem. Midfielder Abderraouf Benguit is expected to return after missing the Constantine match with a minor injury.

Both teams are former Super Cup winners. Sundowns lifted the trophy in 2017, while USM Alger claimed their first title in 2023.

Sundowns also have the historical edge in meetings between the teams, having won both of their previous CAF Champions League encounters in the 2019/20 season.

Mauritanian referee Dahane Beida has been appointed to take charge of Sunday’s final.

DiskiAfrika will follow the build-up throughout the week, with team news, injuries, squad updates, training, press conferences and all the major developments from both camps ahead of Sunday’s continental showdown.