Sundowns coach Mokwena reacts to Champions League draw

Rulani Mokwena is not yet thinking about their Caf Champions League quarterfinal opponents Young Africans who they were drawn against on Tuesday.

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Mamelodi Sundowns will no doubt be favourites to advance to the semifinals of Africa’s premier club competition when they clash against the Tanzanian topflight champions in a two-legged tie later this month.

Mokwena’s immediate focus is on the last 16 round of the Nedbank Cup match against a familiar foe in Maritzburg United. The KwaZulu-Natal based club are now campaign in the first division of South African football after they were relegated from the DStv Premiership last season.

“My thoughts on the Champions League draw, I’m not sure yet. Of course I watched the draw but I don’t have immediate thoughts. I’ve got to watch the opponents closely,” he said following the 1-1 draw to SuperSport United in a DStv Premiership match on Tuesday.

“I’ve watched all the opponents and all the games in the Champions League but I watched as a coach and not as an analyst. I have to switch and unfortunately, I’ve got a nice FIFA break and my focus will be just be on Yanga.

“I will go as far back as I possibly can and try to see their profile. They’ve got a good coach in Miguel Gamondi who was at Sundowns. They are organised with a very good structure but let’s see before I I jump into any sort of conclusions.”

Mokwena is cautious ahead of the cup tie against the Team of Choice on Sunday in a game that the Brazilians will once again be overwhelming favourites.

“I’ve got to focus a bit on the next game which is Maritzburg United. It’s a tough one and the tough ones is where everybody expects you to win,” he warned.

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“You have to just look at the recent results where teams were expected to win in the league game and cup games. They drop points and everyone says but it was Cape Town Spur but the pressure is on the team that is expected to beat them.

“We saw with Chiefs in the last round so so it’s tough. We have to make sure that we get the tactics and the mental space right. We need to bounce back from a disappointing result and motivate the guys to get into the right space of mind.”

Kaizer Chiefs were the biggest casualty of the last round of matches in the season-ending competition when they lost to Motsepe Championship side Milford FC.