Rulani on facing Komphela in MTN8: ‘He knows us very well but…’

Just a day after Steve Komphela shared his “emotional” thoughts about facing his former club, Mamelodi Sundowns, Rulani Mokwena has spoken about meeting his former mentor in the MTN8 clash at the weekend. 

Bafana Ba Style will take on Moroka Swallows at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday, 12 August 2023. The much-anticipated showdown will kick off at 15:00. 

Komphela worked with Mokwena at Sundowns for the past three years before the ex-Kaizer Chiefs coach resigned to join Swallows as head coach in the current season.

Mokwena also worked under Komphela during their heydays at the now-defunct defunct Platinum Stars.   

Speaking during the MTN8 launch in Randburg on Thursday, the Sundowns coach insisted that he has huge respect for coach Komphela, having worked together before. 

RULANI MOKWENA ON FACING STEVE KOMPHELA 

“He knows us very well. But football is played on the pitch. I always say the game belongs to the players,” said Mokwena. 

“At the end of the day, for the 90 minutes, we have to do the best that we can to impose ourselves to try to get some of the pictures out. And hopefully, we do that well enough to give ourselves a very good chance to win the game.”

Mokwena went on to reveal that it’s not going to be a walk in the park when they battle it out with Maswaiswai. 

“It’s going to be difficult playing against a strong team with good players,” added the 36-year-old mentor. 

“We have to make sure we are well prepared for what is going to be a difficult encounter.” 

WHAT RULANI MOKWENA HAS PICKED UP FROM SWALLOWS UNDER THE TUTELAGE OF KOMPHELA 

“Well, I have only been at the luxury to see their two games so far. I watched their game against Arrows last weekend. They are very flexible on the organisational forms,” explained Mokwena. 

“I also got a glimpse of the Cape Town City game, where they made one or two changes but were still very aggressive with the full-backs and some interesting pictures that we saw. 

“It’s going to be very difficult to break them down to get the results.”

RELATED STORY: Komphela’s emotional thoughts on facing former employers Sundowns in MTN8