Rulani Mokwena went on an emotional rant, detailing the difficulties of winning the Caf Champions League, while insisting that, unlike his predecessor and mentor Pitso Mosimane, he will not need eight years to claim the so-called 'holy grail'.
‘Jingles’ is widely credited for the transformation of Sundowns as he inherited a debilitated team in December of 2012, and his first message was a commitment to “awake a sleeping giant”. Indeed, Mosimane was true to his word as he engineered Downs into the immovable and unshakable force it has become on the local front.
Mosimane delivered five DStv Premiership titles paired with the 2016 Champions League – one which Mokwena believes he can secure quicker than the current Abha Club mentor.
Sundowns have all to play for in the semi-final second-leg this Friday against Esperance, needing to overturn a 1-0 deficit to reach what would be a third final in 23 years. Sundowns are tipped as the favourites to clinch the coveted crown, but Mokwena is under no illusion that it is going to be a walk in the park.
On Mosimane’s eight-year reign
“Sometimes I have the feeling that we don’t understand the Champions League. I look at the Champions League with a different perspective. I have been here before as an assistant coach to the previous coach for a very long time.
“The previous coach was here for eight years and he had eight years to try and win the Champions League and we only won it once. We only played the semi-finals twice and won it once.
“I’ve got a four-year contract here, and all I am asking for from the Sundowns fans – give me four years to try to win and win the Champions League, I am not asking for eight years.
Big promise to the Masandawana faithful
“It is going to happen, I am 100% sure it is going to happen. Is it going to be easy? Is it going to be win [after win] all the time? No. Is it not going to be pretty football all the time? No, but we will get there.
“Apart from Denis Onyango and Themba Zwane, these players have never played in a Champions League final. This is a process that we are committed to and it is going to come with ups and downs and with bad results.
“This is my second season and we have done back-to-back semi-finals already and sometimes I have that feeling that people don’t appreciate that because of how they perceive those expectations,” Mokwena explained.
How difficult is it to win the Champions League?
“You only have to go to a position like [that of] Manchester City where they lost to a team like Real Madrid with all the investment and the profile of the players, Pep Guardiola has only won the Uefa Champions League once in 12 years.
“The level is going to be high and the margin for error is going to be small. You make a mistake in the Champions League and you will suffer. If you look at the profile of the last four teams in the competition, there are 21 Champions League trophies among the last four.
“There is Al Ahly with 11 titles, TP Mazembe with five, Esperance have four and then there’s Sundowns with one. What gives us the God-given right to think it is going to be a walk in the park and beat Esperance and win the Champions League? We have to work hard for it and suffer for it,” the Downs mentor said.
A lesson on football heritage
“I get the feeling that people think ‘they’ll just win the Champions League’. It is a very difficult competition. When Jose Mourinho spoke of football heritage, you don’t have to go far.
“Manchester City are by far the best team over both leagues, but they’ve got no heritage. Real Madrid have got an obsession with this competition and then the football gods say, ‘We know this guy, he always buys us flowers and chocolates’, and so it favours (Madrid).
“That is the position that we need to get to, where we are flirting with the Champions League so much that it decides to leave the North African teams and says, ‘I’ve found a new husband’. We have to take it on dates all the time and reach the semi-finals and the final. Eventually, it can say ‘yes I do, we can go to the alter’,” said the DStv Premiership winning coach.
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Turning things around on Friday
“We have to lose sometimes. We have to lose like we did in the game that we lost away so that we can learn how to play in the Champions League and how not to make mistakes. This can only happen if we go through the journey.
“Esperance are a good side and I think they are well-coached, but I also thing Sundowns are a good side, they are a team that is well-coached and also does a lot of very good things on the pitch. Now it is to focus and try to overturn the result and we will do everything that we can,” said Mokwena.
A never-fulfilled appetite
“The goal that we conceded (against Esperance) embarrasses me as a coach. I am embarrassed as a coach to say this is a team that I coach. It starts with me, not the players. There is a lack of attention to detail that points directly at me.
“There were moments where they were on top of us and we had to suffer but I still think we are the better team. I watched Al Ahly versus Mazembe, my goodness, I fell asleep. I said to myself I need to get [an energy drink] and watch this game properly.
The clash between Masandawana and Esperance is scheduled to kick off at 20:00 in Sundowns’ Loftus Versfeld stronghold.
Thank you for picking us up Masandawana! Time to get ready for Champions League football! 🔜#Sundowns #DStvPrem pic.twitter.com/0OCYvygrCO
— Mamelodi Sundowns FC (@Masandawana) April 24, 2024
