Everyone wants to beat Sundowns, says Mokwena

A little over two-and-a-half months ago when Rulani Mokwena was appointed as sole head coach of Mamelodi Sundowns, he could not have dreamed of a better start to his reign than what he has delivered so far.

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Masandawana have been an unshakable and immovable force under Mokwena, continuing their fine form into 2023, as they bulldozed powerhouse Orlando Pirates and in their last outing, dealt easily with rookies and this season’s surprise package, Richards Bay.

Since Mokwena took over as solo head coach, Sundowns have scored 14 goals in five DStv Premiership wins and have conceded none.

“All it means is we need to keep working hard because everyone wants to beat us and we just have to keep pushing and working hard to get better. We will improve and we still have a long way to go,” said Mokwena.

“I tell people that this team is not there yet and we are not a finished product yet. We just try to always make sure that we are ready to give it another go,” he added.

Mokwena’s side might intimidate a number of clubs, with some coaches having already rolled out a red carpet for Masandawana to claim what would be a sixth straight league title.

However, one person who does not flinch and has no fear when he hears the name Mamelodi Sundowns is Chippa United mentor Morgan Mammila.

In fact, what probably puzzles a number of coaches about the 12-time league champions, seems to be a non-issue for Mammila. Chippa visit the defending champions this evening at Loftus Versfeld.

“Sundowns are the simplest team to play against. The only difference is that they are mastering their system.

“Half of those players at Sundowns were fighting relegation where they come from,” said Mammila.

“Players have gone to Sundowns and he turned out to be a different player because of their system.”