Josta Dladla and Tebogo Langerman during the MTN 8 quarterfinal match between Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs.
The outcome was all over bar the muted shouting from a stunned, near-capacity 42 000 crowd, with the Brazilians storming into a 4-0 lead after little more than 30 minutes at Loftus Versveld on Sunday afternoon. A consolation goal for Amakhosi from Reneilwe Letsholonyane in the 76th minute barely concealed the humiliation of the team who have won this cup competiton a record 14 times – five more than closest rivals Orlando Pirates.
The business-like Sundowns also achieved their most emphatic and clear-cut victory over Chiefs in 80 meetings between the two glamour clubs. Ironically the Chiefs defence was taken apart following the off-season signing of top international defenders Morgan Gould and Siboniso Gaxa, who were supposedly designed to make the Amakhosi rear-line well nigh impregnable.
In contrast, Sundowns' newcomers Thamsanqa Sangweni, Tebogo Langerman and Edward Manqele made dream debuts while participating in the avalanche of early goals. Sundowns' remaining goal was scored by an opportunist Lebohang Mokoena, but it was a back-to-form Teko Modise who engineered the Brazilians' triumph with calculated distribution from midfield – playing a part in all of his team's scoring efforts.
Downs appeared to take their foot off the pedal in the second half as play meandered aimlessly to an inevitable conclusion, with Chiefs enjoying greater possession and having numerous, but ineffective shots at goal.
And with nothing going right for Amakhosi, a tame 79th minute penalty from Josta Dladla, after former Santos defender Tyren Arendse had handballed, was comfortably saved by goalkeeper Wayne Sandilands.
The opening 10 minutes were controlled, in the main, by Chiefs, with no inkling of the Amakhosi demolition that was to follow. But once Sangweni took advanatge of a pin-point cross from Modise to open the score with a pin-point header in the 16th minute, the floodgates seemed to open in the Chiefs' defence.
The injury and replacement of Gaxa hardly helped their cause as Langerman, Mokoena and Manqele added the nails into Chiefs' coffin with four goals materialising in a frantic 20-minute scoring spree.
Chiefs badly missed injured kingpin Siphiwe Tshabalala and new coach Stuart Baxter was almost lost for words at the final whistle, with delighted Sundowns coach Johan Neeskens proclaiming "everything went according to plan in the first half, but we got a little sloppy after the interval." – Sapa