Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Rulani Mokwena says they are relishing the hostile crowd that awaits them at the Stade Mohamed V in Casablanca when they face champions Wydad Athletic Club in the first leg CAF Champions League semi-final.
Sundowns face the holders of the competition who shocked many by parting ways with head coach Juan Carlos Garrido and appointing Sven Vandenbroeck last week which provides somewhat of a surprise factor coming into the tie in Morocco on Saturday.
With this trophy eluding Sundowns since their maiden success in 2016 under then-head coach Pitso Mosimane, their current coach Rulani Mokwena admits it’s an exciting proposition to be in the last four amongst the royalty of the continent.
“We’re excited to be here, to have this opportunity to play an important competition for our football club, and excited to be in the semi-final against a big team like Wydad and at this stage, a big competition, we’re fully prepared and ready for the match,” Mokwena said in the pre-match press conference at the Stade Mohamed V.
When asked if they are prepared for what’s set to be a sold-out arena, in what many consider as one of the most fearsome stadiums and crowds in African football, Mokwena backed his side’s experience of North African travels.
“Of course, the atmosphere is going to be important, how we absorb, how we do that but of course this team has shown in Cairo that we can play in front of a hostile away crowd, we did that in Algeria too, we played in front of a hostile and aggressive crowd.
“In the Champions League, you have t get used to playing away matches, particularly when you know this type of competition, where a lot of the strong teams are, it helps them, the crowd. But we’re happy to be here, we want to stay in this competition for long.
“That means we have to play every game and try to win but at the same time, we want to enjoy this moment and try to give it our best and create long-lasting memories, that come with performing in front of an energetic and intelligent crowd.
“But I can tell you we will enjoy it because it gives energy to the team and we’ll try to put in a very good performance because, without that, we don’t have a chance to win on Saturday.”
Mokwena also touched on the appointment of their new head coach, who formerly was in charge of Botola Pro giants ASFAR, Simba SC and the Zambia national team before his short stint in the Saudi Pro League with Abha Club.
“We’ll have to wait and see if we play [expansively], we’ve done a lot of good work on a very complicated opponent, and we understand where the strengths and weaknesses from Wydad come from, it’s complicated in a sense that only against Chabab, the coach had his first type of imprint on the team,” he explained.
“The imprint looks similar to his time at Simba, to his time in Saudi [Abha Club], to his time in Zambia, and even his time here in Morocco [with ASFAR], it’s a good team that are defensively strong, experienced and quality players in every position.
– Advertisement –
“The 4-2-3-1 [fortmation] can turn into a back three, he did it against Pyramids with Simba, he did it in Saudi [too].”
Sundowns face off against the North African giants on Saturday evening at 21h00.
