The Brazilians were left needing a miracle to retain their title after losing 3-2 to TS Galaxy at the Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday.

Victor Letsoalo (6'), Sedwyn George (17') had put Galaxy into a two-goal lead before Brayan Leon (37', 40') restored parity before half time.

Mpho Mvelase, however, sealed the win with his goal in the 46th minute.

The result left the Brazilians top of the standings, but just three points clear of the Buccaneers, who have two games left to play.

Motsepe acknowledged the challenges of a tough season while admitting that competition is good for the league.

"I think first of all our coach said it at the beginning of the season that this was going to be a very, very tough campaign," he said on SuperSport.

"There's a lot of reasons why it was tough. Maybe internally from a Mamelodi Sundowns perspective, people will say all sorts of fatigue and coming off the Club World Cup.

"But honestly, credit should be given to the competition and the teams that were around us and the way that they raised the bar and they raised the standard. And there's so many teams in the league that when we came to play them, they really put on a good show, a good performance for their own supporters and for the product.

"So, you know for us we always welcome competition. It makes everybody better. And this is one of those moments where you realize that, because you will be better because of your opponents in the competition that pushes you.

"It's the same way in global football, you know, you never have a team that continues and continues and continues to win alone. It's the competition around them that make them better. And I think this is one of those seasons where we can all be very proud of the fact that there's been a lot of competition and we welcome it, and we acknowledge that we've had a really good run.

"And this team has been privileged to be part of the competition. As I say, there's still a few games left for other teams, but we can be proud and say that we did our best, we did our job, and now we have to focus on the next very important hurdle that awaits us next week."

Sundowns are next in action against AS FAR in the Champions League final over two legs, starting on Sunday 17 May.

Orlando Pirates face Saint Eloi Lupopo in crunch Champions League qualifier