Following his side's exit from the CAF Champions League, Mamelodi Sundowns head coach, Pitso Mosimane, admits his side were nervous but also heaped praise on the referee.
Sundowns Champions League journey ended after hey lost 3-1 to TP Mazembe on Sunday afternoon and the former Bafana Bafana coach feels they showed their inexperience in the first half.
"It was a game of two halves, obviously the first half was not good for us," Mosimane said.
"For us to concede two goals in the first half was not very good, we played well in the second, hence we managed to score, I always knew they would score.
"We conceded the goal in the 39th minute when against the run of play, when we saw them scoring at that time. we were a little bit nervous, we showed a little bit of inexperience in that space. We didn't play, we were just kicking the ball and succumbing to the pressure they were giving us, instead of playing our own game."
"But in the second half after a (halftime) talk, when we knew we got nothing to lose but everything to get if we attack, with the few changes we brought in the second half, we managed to play our own Sundowns game and we managed to give them trouble.
"We scored a little bit late to be honest, had we scored a little bit earlier, they were panicking at the end and hence they started to hide the balls, the ball boys were not giving the balls, delaying tactics.
Mosimane also heaped praise on the referee for his performance in an intimidating atmosphere.
"If we to be honest the referee was fair and after the I wanted to congratulate them, It's unusual to find that kind of refereeing especially in an intimidating stadium," he added.
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