Ulsan HD vs Mamelodi Sundowns Tips, Predictions and Bet Builder

Ulsan HD have dominated South Korean football in recent years but their recent AFC Champions League performances have been poor and they are off the pace in the K League.

Ulsan HD vs Mamelodi Sundowns Tips Summary

Market	Tip	Odds
Match Result	Mamelodi Sundowns	11/8
Best Bet	Mamelodi Sundowns to win	11/8
Bet Builder	Under 2.5 goals, Lucas Ribeiro to score or assist, Hyeon-Woo Jo to make two or more saves	13/2

Key Match Stats

• Ulsan HD have won only six of their last 16 games
• Both teams have scored in six of Ulsan HD’s last seven outings
• Mamelodi Sundowns have scored the first goal in seven of their last eight matches
• The South African side are unbeaten in their last nine games
• Lucas Ribeiro scored 20 goals in 48 appearances for Sundowns this season

Ulsan HD vs Mamelodi Sundowns Prediction

Best Bet: Mamelodi Sundowns to win @ 11/8

With Borussia Dortmund and Fluminense in this group, both Ulsan HD and Mamelodi Sundowns know that they realistically have to win this opener if they are to progress to the knockout stages of this year’s Club World Cup.

Mamelodi Sundowns last featured in the CAF Champions League final, where they were pipped 3-2 on aggregate by Egyptian side Pyramids.

However they had beaten fellow Club World Cup teams Esperance de Tunis and Al Ahly en route to the final and have dominated South African football for many years.

They are fancied to get the better of an Ulsan HD side which has struggled to replicate their former glories in the last 12 months.

Manager Hong Myung-bo departed last summer for the South Korean national job and his successor Kim Pan-gon has failed to live up to the same heights.

The Tigers lost six of their seven games in the most recent AFC Champions League campaign, including defeats to Malaysia's Johor Darul Ta'zim and Thailand's Buriram United.

They have also had a poor start to the new K League campaign and currently sit in third after a 3-1 defeat to league leaders Jeonbuk last time out.

The goals have dried up for Ulsan - they have only netted 23 in 19 league games - and they could fall short in this opener. 

Joe Casey explains:

Mamelodi Sundowns have a dynamic forward pairing of Brazilian Lucas Ribeiro and South African forward Iqraam Rayners, who netted 30 league goals between them last season. In a game that could be low-scoring, that duo could prove the difference.

Ulsan HD vs Mamelodi Sundowns Bet Builder Tip

• Under 2.5 goals
• Lucas Ribeiro to score or assist
• Hyeon-Woo Jo to make two or more saves
  
  Pays 13/2

Only one of Mamelodi Sundowns’ six CAF Champions League knockout games went over 2.5 goals and this looks set to be another cagey affair.

Lucas Ribeiro was key to the Sundowns’ success last season, taking the most shots of any player in the South African top flight, and he is fancied to either score or assist.

Ulsan HD goalkeeper Hyeon-Woo Jo won the K League MVP in 2024 and could be busy, side with him to make two or more saves.

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With the stakes at play here, a low-scoring affair looks likely and a single goal could even decide the result.

Joe Casey adds.

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Tactics, Form and Team News

Former Crystal Palace and Bolton midfielder Chung-Yong Lee could start to provide experience to his Ulsan side.

Expected Ulsan HD lineup: (4-1-4-1): Hyeon-Woo Jo; Sang-Woo Kang, Young-Gwon Kim, Myung-Gwan Seo, Ludwigson; Woo-Young Jung; Won-Sang Um, Bojanic, Seung-Beom Ko, Chung-Yong Lee; Farias.

Young defender Asekho Tiwani misses out for the Sundowns with an injury picked up for South Africa Under-20s in April.

Expected Mamelodi Sundowns lineup: (4-2-3-1): Williams; Mudau, Kekana, Lebusa, Modiba; Allende, Mokoena;  Ribeiro, Adams, Matthews; Rayners.

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.