Saint Eloi Lupopo Ditch Orlando Pirates Tactics as They Unveil New Plan for Mamelodi Sundowns

Image source: CAF Online

Saint Eloi Lupopo Ditch Orlando Pirates Tactics as They Unveil New Plan for Mamelodi Sundowns

Abigael Wafula 19:31 - 21.11.2025

Saint Eloi Lupopo have revealed that they will abandon the tactics used against Orlando Pirates as they prepare a new approach for their showdown with Mamelodi Sundowns.

FC Saint-Eloi Lupopo's coaching staff has confirmed they will deploy a completely different game plan for their CAF Champions League group stage debut against Mamelodi Sundowns.

The technical bench revealed ambitions to move away from the tactics that saw them overcome Orlando Pirates in the preliminary round.

Going up against Orlando Pirates, Saint Eloi Lupopo stunned the former CAF Champions League winners, claiming a solid 3-0 win in the first leg played at home.

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Orlando Pirates put up a good fight in the second leg, claiming a 3-0 win over the Congolese giants to level the scores 3-3. The result forced the teams to go into a penalty shootout, where Saint Eloi Lupopo claimed the victory to advance to the group stages.

Saint Eloi Lupopo On Plans to Shock Mamelodi Sundowns

The Congolese club is back in South Africa, the same country where they clinched their spot in the group stage, to take on Masandawana at Loftus Versfeld this weekend.

In their clash against Orlando Pirates in the second leg, Saint Eloi Lupopo employed a physical and direct style to disrupt the Soweto giants.

The approach paid off, earning the reigning DR Congo champions a landmark entry into Africa's elite club competition for the 2025/26 season.

However, ahead of the club's first-ever group stage fixture in the CAF Champions League, assistant coach Yassine Salami made it clear that fans should not expect a repeat performance against last season's runners-up.

"We take everything game by game," Salami stated during a pre-match press conference. "Our last match here was very special because it was a final for us in order to reach the final 16 teams in the Champions League."

"The strategy we used in the last match is the strategy we used in the last match, but tomorrow, we will use a different strategy," he continued. "We can’t play with the same things because the opponent is different."

After their clash against Mamelodi Sundowns, Saint Eloi Lupopo will host Hilal Obayed in another high-stakes match with the hope of making the quarterfinal of the CAF Champions League.