Barcelona too good for Sundowns in Mandela Cup
Luis Suarez was among the goalscorers as Barcelona beat South African champions Mamelodi Sundowns 3-1 to win the Mandela Centenary Cup.
Ousmane Dembele and Andre Gomes also scored for the Spanish champions before Sibusiso Vilakazi replied for the hosts at Soccer City, near Johannesburg.
Lionel Messi came off the bench to a standing ovation.
The match was part of celebrations to mark 100 years since the birth of Nelson Mandela.
The match was sold out with over 80 000 fans embracing the FNB stadium.
Coach Pitso Mosimane conceded the gulf in class was evident on the night.
“I think the difference is the Rand and the Euro, to sum it up," Mosimane said.
"Ja, when they scored the first goal in the first minute, we started to say, ‘How many goals were coming?’
"But we paid school fees tonight [Wednesday] and I think you saw that.
“I think Bangaly made a big mistake by giving the ball away and Dembele scored. I think 'Keke' gave the ball away and the striker [Gomes] scored. And the other goal, okay, it’s Barca, that is they way Barca plays and that was the school fees we paid.
“There’s a huge difference in terms of results and also we should have used our opportunities. I think Khama should have used his opportunity and Langerman should have used his also. With the keeper to beat, he decided to pass, to bring it across but in Maritzburg [against Maritzburg United in the league last month] he cracked it from far.
“But to sum it up, obviously you could see the difference. You could see the quality in Barca; you see how they pass the ball and we struggled to get the ball.”
Sundowns had to persuade Guinean club Horoya, and the Confederation of African Football, to postpone their Champions League tie by a week in order to play