Following a 1-1 draw with Mamelodi Sundowns on Tuesday, Cardiff City's boss has made a big admission about the South African giants.
Sundowns remain winless in pre-season after their first three friendly matches in Europe. The Pretoria outfit opened their preparations with a 2-1 defeat to German third-tier side SV Sandhausen, before losing 1-0 to Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kyiv.
Read: 'We will put SA club under pressure in CAFCC'
Having bolstered their team with the arrival of new assistant coach Romain Folz and Brazilian attacker Arthur Sales, Sundowns were eager to claim their first pre-season victory when they met English Championship team Cardiff City on Tuesday afternoon.
It was not to be, though, with Downs substitute Tashreeq Matthews having to score an equaliser for Masandawana to salvage a 1-1 draw.
Although the match ended in a stalemate, Cardiff boss Erol Bulut revealed afterwards that he did not expect Downs to be as good as they were.
Get the latest soccer news and be ahead of the game. Follow our WhatsApp Channel via this link!
"It was intensive, high speed," Erol explained, per the Welsh club's official website. "In the second half. I didn't expect the opponent to be like they were, they have good speed.
"We didn't do our work as well as we should do. We were travelling and then played the game, maybe that affected our game a little bit.
"I was expecting us to be more aggressive, creating chances and to have a few more goals, but sometimes, games are like that.
"The opponent was also good, they were pressing high, and we saw many youngsters and how they react to playing in these kind of games.
"In the end, it was 1-1 and we can learn from this.
"For the youngsters, it was a difficult test. Some of them played with us last year, but some of them are new to the experiences in these kinds of games, so there are positive things that we take with us. The things that were not so good, we can analyse for the next games.
"The physical test was good because it was really hot, the tempo was high. With our physical condition, I am satisfied. Sometimes, against these kinds of teams, who press high, we have to keep the ball better, but it is pre-season and we can learn from this."
Read: Man Utd 'chasing' new African star