Sundowns coach not drawn into Pirates' bad treatment complaints: 'We have our Advance Team'

Orlando Pirates co-coach Mandla Ncikazi expressed disappointment in the treatment his club received from their CAF Confederation Cup quarter-final opponents Simba SC in Tanzania last weekend.

The first-leg ended 1-0 in favour of the home side, with Ncikazi going viral on social media for his post-match press conference comments.

Ncikazi's remarks caused quite a stir and will continue to ring in the ears of many in the lead-up to the second-leg taking place at Orlando Stadium on Sunday (18:00 SA time).

Mamelodi Sundowns, who are in CAF's premier club competition, the Champions League, also played to a defeat, going down 2-1 in the quarter-final first-leg against Petro de Luanda.

On Saturday, the Brazilians will look to overturn the deficit as they welcome the Angolan giants to FNB Stadium (18:00 SA time) for a mouth-watering second-leg.

Speaking to the media ahead of that crucial fixture, Mngqithi was probed to answer a question surrounding Ncikazi's candid remarks and whether it was valid.

Sundowns have been playing consistently in Africa over the past seven years and played in some of the most hostile arena's around the continent.

But other than that, have African clubs mistreated Sundowns purposely while travelling for the CAF Champions League?

While he opted not to touch on Pirates' experience, Mngqithi did admit that Sundowns have an 'Advance Team' that travels to the playing destinations around Africa before the team's arrival to ensure that there are no issues with training pitches, accommodation and buses.

"To be honest, I would not want to dwell too much on what coach Mandla said. I don't know their experiences and what happened to them in Tanzania," the co-coach told reporters on Thursday.

"With us, it is a little bit