Allende’s late winner sends Sundowns back to the top

Mamelodi Sundowns needed a late goal to grind out a narrow 1-0 win over AmaZulu in a Betway Premiership clash at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Tuesday night.

Marcelo Allende came off the bench to replace Katlego Ntsabeleng with 15 minutes remaining and struck the winner in what proved to be an entertaining encounter in Durban.

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The victory lifted Sundowns back to the summit of the standings on goal difference. They are level on 38 points with Orlando Pirates after 17 matches.

Sundowns dominated possession but lacked real conviction in the final third as Arthur Zwane’s side defended resolutely and maintained their shape at the back.

Just when it appeared the match was heading for a stalemate, Allende popped up unmarked on the edge of the box to hand Sundowns maximum points.

The first real opening of the contest arrived in the 20th minute when Khulumani Ndamane’s header was tipped over the bar by Usuthu goalkeeper Darren Johnson.

Although AmaZulu were on the back foot for much of the first half, they fashioned the best opportunity of the opening 45 minutes.

Thandolwenkosi Ngwenya found himself one-on-one with Ronwen Williams, but the striker was denied by an excellent point-blank save from the Sundowns captain on the stroke of half-time.

The chance stemmed from a fine cross by Riaan Hanamub from the left, before Hendrick Ekstein blasted the rebound over the bar.

Sundowns started the second half brightly, with Jayden Adams’ header drifting agonisingly wide following a corner delivered by Aubrey Modiba five minutes after the restart.

Ntsabeleng then missed the target by a whisker from inside the box after being set up by Khuliso Mudau in the 66th minute, as the defending champions continued their search for a breakthrough.

Allende came closest to breaking the deadlock when his curling effort struck the upright with 10 minutes left to play. The Chilean midfielder, however, would not be denied twice.

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Three minutes later, he drilled a low shot into the bottom corner to secure all three points and complete a league double over AmaZulu after they beat them 2-0 in the reverse fixture last year.