Leading Orlando Pirates is like being in an army – Mokwena

Pirates will resume their Absa Premiership campaign against Chippa United at Orlando Stadium on Saturday, after a poor start to the season, in which they have been knocked out of the MTN8 and Caf Champions League, and have not won any matches since Mokwena took over after Milutin Sredojevic’s sudden relegation on August 16.

“Not in the least,” said Mokwena on Wednesday, when asked about whether he felt he was looking over his shoulder as the Pirates coach.

READ: Maphangule reveals coaching differences at Pirates

“Pirates are a club that value certain principles. I try not to speak about myself a lot, when I am in a leadership position. The position at Pirates is like being in an army, it is yours to serve and part of serving is to think less about yourself and put the team, the supporters and the institution first.

“It is yours to focus on the responsibilities at hand and make sure you win and satisfy the supporters, because the expectations are high and rightfully so.

“At the same time, it is on us to make sure we manage those expectations, by creating the right environment … it is not about me … I could have been with Bafana Bafana (Stuart Baxter at one stage offered Mokwena a position with the senior national team), and I didn’t go, I had job offers to go somewhere else and be head coach, I didn’t go. If I speak about loyalty and servantship, my actions should speak for themselves. It is not about looking over my shoulder, for me it is to serve and help a great institution get back to where it belongs.”

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