Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Manqoba Mngqithi said despite them using newly-signed goalkeeper Ronwen Williams in the recent games he is by no means the first choice and the starting position is still up for grabs.
Since his arrival from SuperSport United, the 30-year-old Williams and been the preferred starter by the Downs technical team.
But Sundowns do have quality options to call upon in their squad, namely: Denis Onyango, Kennedy Mweene and Reyaad Pieterse.
In an interview with KickOff.com, coach Mngqithi confirmed that by no means the first choice goalkeeper position had been tied down by Williams and the other keepers could also fight their way to starting matches.
“It’s not going to be a rotation but I would say anyone can be the No.1 goalkeeper at Sundowns,” said Mngqithi.
“We have four top goalkeepers who can play at any given time. It was always important for us to induct Ronwen very quickly and integrate him into the group which I believe he has done fairly well.
RONWEN WILLIAMS @ SUNDOWNS
— #UNPLAYABLE (@UnplayableZA) August 29, 2022
🥅 6 games
⏰️ 540 minutes
🧤 4 clean sheets
⚽️ 2 goals conceded
THOUGHTS ON HIS START???#UNPLAYABLE pic.twitter.com/pnFb3dMnh0
“But the competition is still wide open, you don’t know how the season is going to finish and you don’t know what’s going be happening in the Champions League.
“When he is still playing, he must also do the best he can to make sure he stays there because in our team we have too many matches and everybody else is expected to give us something.
“When you look at what is happening at training, I can tell you Denis is looking very good.
“I can tell you Reyaad is looking very good, Kennedy is also looking very good, but Ronwen has done well, to be honest.
It's so disrespectful to Ronwen Williams mentioning him in the same breath as Itumeleng Khune in 2022. That Khune ship sinked a long time ago.#DstvPrem #Sundowns #MTN8 pic.twitter.com/CwpgLyOego
— 🆈🅴🅻🅻🅾🅼🅰🅽𓃵 (@YellowM23654784) August 31, 2022
“So, the competition is still wide open and I would not want to dwell on who is number one or number two because we brought him in to come and assist in that space and he has done fairly well so far,” Mngqithi added.
Sundowns will next be in DStv Premiership action on Wednesday (19h30) when they face Chippa United at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
