A South African coach doing duty for American club Lexington Sporting has given his impression of Mamelodi Sundowns after their narrow loss against Borussia Dortmund.
Sundowns won over neutrals who were watching them for the first time, coming back from a three-goal deficit to lose 4-3 against a European powerhouse in Dortmund.
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Under normal circumstances, the Tshwane giants could have been expected to show respect to BvB, but were a much more dominant side, only to be picked off on counter-attacks.
Kyle Timm, assistant coach at USL Championship side Lexington, says vulnerability on counter-attacks was what he feared for Miguel Cardoso's men before watching the game in the stands at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati on Saturday.
"It was an entertaining game, especially for neutrals. I was a Sundowns fan for 90 minutes, I was really happy and excited that Sundowns put on the show that they put on," Timm told KickOff.com.
"They were able to stay true to their identity, regardless of the opposition. They still tried to do what they do. I guess the feelings that I had before going to the game, understanding European football, Germans more so than other countries, they can absorb a lot of pressure and hit you on counter-attacks.
"So, that was my fear, and it happened. They punish mistakes at that level. So, a couple of mistakes from Sundowns' side... These guys didn't even create a lot of chances and obviously didn't really control the game with the ball, but they were deadly on transitions.
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"Almost all the goals (from Dortmund) were from transitions - two, three passes, goal! They don't play around these people," Timm added in giving his summation.
