Sundowns’ Mokwena refuses to blame Williams for costly error

Before Mamelodi Sundowns jetted off to Sudan where they drew 1-1 with Al-Hilal this past Saturday in the Caf Champions League, Downs head coach Rulani Mokwena spoke about the riskiness that comes with starting their build-up from the back.

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And Sundowns were confronted with the exact problem when Abdel Raman stole the ball from goalkeeper Ronwen Williams to score Hilal’s goal, which was an equalizer for the hosts after Khuliso Mudau had scored for Masandawana.

In this particular build-up play, Williams played a short goal-kick to Mvala, who was quick to return the ball to Williams but Raman was quick enough to intercept the ball before Williams could play it wide to the left.

“You need special awareness. The goalkeeper has to have the ability because you can’t force them to have something that they don’t have,” said Mokwena.

“The best defensive teams are the ones who defend the smallest spaces. If the ball moves from the goalkeeper to the centre back, it is easier to direct but if it goes to the centre back to the goalkeeper, the space is a bit bigger.

“The ‘keeper must be able to find the possibilities because if the spaces are closed at one point, he must put it somewhere else. It is risky,” he added.

Kekana’s box marking, ‘unmatched’

One player who Mokwena trusts in the box is Grant Kekana, who he describes as one of the best zonal defenders in the DStv Premiership. Kekana, however, is unavailable at the moment due to injury, and Mokwena cannot wait to have him back in his side.

“Grant is the best box defender I have seen in the country. When I say box, I am talking about the penalty area. Others call it the red zone. In one game, there was an overload in the box and Mvala made a mistake. Grant just waited and read the situation. I told him that I have never seen anyone do what he does,” said Mokwena.

“He told me that he has been doing this his whole life at AmaTuks and SuperSport United. Morden day centre backs need play-making abilities, so it helps when we have players like Mothobi. Brian Onyango, Rushine De Reuck and Mosa Lebusa,” he added.

Meanwhile, Sundowns will shift their focus to the DStv Premiership where they now only need two points to secure a sixth successive league title.