Cape Town - Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Rhulani Mokwena praised his side for recovering well from their MNT8 semi-final disappointment after they demolished Maritzburg United 5-0 at the Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg on Tuesday night.
“The boys put in good energy and a good performance. The coaches worked hard behind the scenes to get the boys mentally prepared. The score was not a true reflection of how difficult this game was. The Yellow Nation deserves a better feeling than what we gave them last weekend,” said Mokwena.
The result was a good response from Masandawana after they were humiliated 3-0 by Orlando Pirates in their MTN8 semi-final second leg clash last weekend.
In the aftermath of the weekend’s poor result, Sundowns also announced a coaching reshuffle as they ditched their “co-coaching” system and appointed Mokwena as the head coach whilst Manqoba Mngqithi and Steve Komphela were demoted.
Mokwena feels humbled to have been tasked to lead South Africa’s most successful football club in the modern era. The young tactician, who has developed a reputation for taking a very thorough, research-orientated and academic approach to the game is hoping to follow in the footsteps of former South African President Nelson Mandela, using the philosophy that “the best leaders lead from the back”.
“I feel an enormous sense of gratitude and appreciation for being bestowed with a huge opportunity. It is a collective effort and nothing changes. I am as important to this club as everyone else, if not less important. There are people at Mamelodi Sundowns who are far more important than me. I am just a small piece of the puzzle that tries to give its best for this organization. I will continue to do that. We still have coach Manqoba and coach Steve, who are top coaches. The rest of the technical team did not change. My role has not changed,” said Mokwena.
The result moved Downs back to the top of the league standings with 25 points after 11 games. They have a three point advantage over second place Richards Bay and will be expected to win a record-extending sixth consecutive and 13th overall league crown come the end of the season.
Mokwena’s big challenge will however be to lead his club to the CAF Champions League title, a trophy that they have not won since 2016.
Sundowns are next in action on Saturday night as they travel to the Chatsworth Stadium in Durban for a league fixture against the unpredictable Royal AM.
@EshlinV