AFL: Ten-man Sundowns eliminate Petro to book Al Ahly in semi

South African giants Mamelodi Sundowns, home to Harambee Stars centre back Brian Mandela, will face Egyptian giants Al Ahly in the semifinal of the Africa Football League tournament.

This is after Sundowns and Petro Atletico de Luanda played to a barren draw this evening, the former proceeding to the semifinal after winning the tie 2-0 on aggregate.

The first leg’s 2-0 win in Angola proved enough to get the Brazilians to the last four.

Earlier on, Ahly had eliminated former Tanzanian champions Simba on the away goal rule after a 1-1 draw in the return leg.

The two teams had played for a 2-2 draw in Dar es Salaam last week.

Having won the first leg, Sundowns were expected to make good use of home comfort and teach Petro some football lessons.

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However, the former African champions suffered a blow barely three minutes into the game after center-back Mothobi Mvala was sent off for a last-man challenge.

Despite their numerical advantage, Petro rarely threatened and created clear-cut chances, underlying the tactical discipline employed by Sundowns who opted to possess the ball for long spells and limit the spaces.

Sundowns goalkeeper Ronwen Williams made some crucial saves to keep his side in the game and did well in commanding and organizing the defence.

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Mandela was an unused substitute in the game.

The first leg of the semis between the two African giants is set to go down on Sunday, with the return leg happening a week later.

The two teams met earlier in February in the CAF Champions League, with Sundowns forcing a 2-2 draw in Cairo.