Marcelo Allende’s late goal secures the points for Sundowns

Substitute Marcelo Allende scored his third goal in five games in added time to earn Mamelodi Sundowns a last-gasp 1-0 Premiership win against AmaZulu at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday.

The Durban team provided the stern test that was expected for Downs as AmaZulu matched their hosts in the opening half. Increasingly Usuthu played on the back foot as the Brazilians piled on the pressure in the second 45 minutes.

It seemed it would not be Downs’ afternoon until Allende’s strike in the 91st minute earned a win that gave the Pretoria team a five-point lead over Orlando Pirates, who have a game in hand.

The opening half was competitive, both sides defending strongly and openings hard to come by. Downs and Usuthu had chances they would have felt could have seen them go to the break with a goal instead of goalless.

Inside the opening 20 minutes Themba Zwane turned a defender twice before cracking a shot onto the crossbar.

Just before the half-hour AmaZulu’s Keagan Buchanan hit a free-kick that was cleared as far as Gabadinho Mhango on the edge of the area who struck with power to force a stop from Ronwen Williams. The loose ball fell at the feet of centreback Sandile Khumalo, Williams making an athletic double-stop.

Downs had another chance in added time, Sipho Mbule showing his skill on the right as he sidefooted a pass to Erwin Saavedra, the Bolivian blasting wide.

The second half was one-way traffic in the direction of Usuthu’s goal.

Mokoena fashioned space on the edge of the box via a Zwane back-heel and drove wide. A corner was taken short to Allende who crossed, the ball falling at the knees of a seemingly surprised Peter Shalulile who could not get a shot in.

Downs’ awe-inspiring strength was on display when, a day after his signing from Cape Town City, Bafana left-back Terrence Mashego replaced Sifiso Ngobeni in the 75th minute.

A stray Mothwa clearance went to Shalulile, the keeper recovering to save from the Namibian. Substitute Morena skipped inside from the left and fed Zwane free on the right to shoot at Mothwa.

Seconds into added time Zwane stabbed forward to Allende on the right who fed Morena to be dispossessed in the area. The loose ball found the Chilean again, free on the right, who placed a shot to find Mothwa too far out to cover his near post, the ball squirting in off the keeper’s attempted save.