Mamelodi Sundowns’ lofty ambitions are beginning to bite them. While it has been plain sailing for the last couple of years, the club has not cracked it big in recent seasons. They have not been the smooth, ruthless machine were known for a few seasons ago.
The decline started showing after the sudden departure of Pitso Mosimane. The news that the former Bafana Bafana coach had resigned from the club, not only shook Mzansi, it also had a ripple effect throughout the African continent. This because Mosimane had made Sundowns his project, invested his life in the club and his main focus was to turn it into a force to be reckoned with, and also make a name for himself in Africa and in the Middle East.
Since his departure, and if the club supporters and bosses are honest, things have not been quite the same. The bosses decided to add steel into the technical team by bringing in Steve Komphela to join Manqoba Mngqithi and Rulani Mokwena. “Meshack, Shadrack and Abednido” were formed.
Even though they produced decent results and won some trophies – they did not do it with gay abandon. The flair and the invincibility are no longer there. There were hiccups along the way. The structure seemed to be balanced when Mngqithi was in charge of the three co-coaches. But after several unimpressive results, and a 3-0 whipping from Orlando Pirates in the MTN8 semifinals, the bosses brought about change. They demoted Mngqithi and Komphela and propelled Mokwena to the top, as the sheriff in charge.
At the end of the season, after a promising campaign that had promised a lot of silverware, the Brazilians only ended up with the DStv Premiership title. What annoyed the big bosses mostly was how they capitulated in the Caf Champions League semifinals when they were on their way to the final with only a few minutes left on the clock.
But nonetheless, the records kept on tumbling, winning was still the staple diet and losing was as rare. But with that, the egos started to swell, and this was an inside wound that supporters, opponents and office-bearers could not see. But at some point, the wound had to fester. Komphela says he could not take the “it’s all about me” attitude and spoke to club president Patrice Motsepe about the toxic environment.
Mngqithi stayed behind. I am reliably told he is not happy and that if he could get a similar salary elsewhere, he would grab the opportunity and jump higher than an Olympic pole vault medallist.
In the new season, Sundowns capitulated twice already – in the MTN8 final against Pirates and the midweek loss to TS Galaxy in the Carling Knockout Cup.
Mokwena lamented how they could be scheduled to play a day after the Fifa international break. But it was the same Sundowns that approached the league to have their fixtures rearranged so that they could play in the $4-million (R76-million) African Football League.
The thought of conquering this Super League, adding another R75-million into their already overflowing pockets, was enough to defy logic – and that they can play a host of matches and tournaments without thinking about the repercussions.
It’s all reaching a bottle neck, and things are falling apart. Mokwena is now facing the biggest test of character in his short coaching career. Does he have the gonads to show he is the real deal? Time will tell…
