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WATCH: Rulani Mokwena opens up on shock Sundowns exit
“I didn’t want to leave. I have to make that clear. But I think my hand was forced,” said Mokwena.
Rulani Mokwena, former head coach of Mamelodi Sundowns (Samuel Shivambu/BackpagePix)
Former Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena has opened up on his shock departure from the Brazilians.
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Sundowns on Wednesday confirmed through a statement that they had “amicably” parted ways with Mokwena.
However, speaking with Robert Marawa on Marawa Sports Worldwide (MSW) later on the day, Mokwena refuted the statement, saying it was not his intention to leave Sundowns, but his hand was forced.
Watch Mokwena’s interview with Marawa below:
“I didn’t want to leave. I have to make that clear. But I think my hand was forced,” said Mokwena.
“There are a lot of things I can’t talk about because I’ve signed a confidentiality clause that prohibits me from speaking about some of the details. I hope you understand there are things I cannot disclose because if I do, I’ll get into a lot of trouble.”
Having won the DStv Premiership for the third time in a row and also won the Coach of the Season award also for the third time in a row, Mokwena said the club’s decision to let him go did not make sense.
“It makes no sense to me. But, there are a lot of things in life that don’t make sense, but they happen and you just have to accept,” he said.
“I’m blessed with enough wisdom to comprehend some of the things like this. Sometimes in football some strange things happen. But that’s the game.”
Despite the surprise end to his career at Sundowns, Mokwena is proud of what he achieved at the club as a 37-year-old coach.
“What I’m accepting is that at 37, I’ve coached two of the biggest teams (Orlando Pirates and Sundowns) in South African football. I’ve won, as a head coach, seven trophies already at 37. I’ve won four league titles, coach of the season three times. I leave with a record that says 91 games played, 60 games won, nine lost and 11 draws. When I look at that, I’m extremely proud.”
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Mokwena also revealed that he will return to Black Poison FC to rediscover his passion for football. Black Poison is an amateur club that Mokwena owns and it’s where he started his coaching career.
“I’m already employed, I will be coaching Black Poison for the next couple of weeks. Hopefully I can revitalise myself and I can get the passion for football and for coaching because I have lost it a little bit, I must say.
“Maybe going back to where everything started, maybe that will reignite something.”
