New Sundowns striker promises goals

Mamelodi Sundowns’ new striker Mauricio Affonso has promised to bang in goals for Masandawana but has shied away from committing on the number of goals that the fans can expect him to score in his debut season in South African football.

The Uruguayan is expected to lead the front line for the defending Absa Premiership champions as head coach Pitso Mosimane has said he wants to revert to playing with a traditional No.9 as he did in the first few years of his Masandawana tenure.

READ: Sirino backs Affonso to do well at Sundowns

“As an attacker I wanted something different in my career and I felt that Sundowns is a good challenge for me to come here. The fans can expect to see a lot from me, I am here to work for the coach and the team and I hope to contribute with goals and in any other way I can,” said the 27-year-old striker in his first interview since joining the Brazilians.

He continued: “At this point I can’t say how many goals I can score but I just want to help the team and contribute as much as I can. As a striker, the job is to score goals but the goal is to help the team and make the team better.”

Affonso also revealed that he was relieved to find a couple of South Americans in the team, especially countryman Gaston Sirino, Argentine forward Emiliano Tade, Brazil’s Ricardo Nascimento and Ali Meza of Venezuela.

“It has helped that they are part of the team and they are my first point of reference in terms of communication and it has made it much easier for me to settle in,” concluded Affonso.

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