Sundowns' coach impressed by his key player leadership qualities

(Source: www.goal.com)

Mamelodi Sundowns can find themselves in good and commanding positions on and off the pitch. It's not known easy to be on top of the game for almost a decade. Hence, the technical team will need the players' buy-in at all times. When they have senior players in their squad then they will look into getting them involved in leadership roles. Not everything is about being known, some players enjoy doing their work in silence and let their work do the talking. This is what the Sundowns fringe star Bongani Zungu is doing at Chloorkop, as he is regarded as a player-coach.

Although it's something that comes within the player to bring value into the value, some of them don't do it for extra income. It's a matter of cementing their stay in such a prestigious establishment and they know that there's longevity at Sundowns. After fans questioned the re-signing of Zungu to Downs, now Rulani Mokwena has set the record straight. As he stated the talented midfielder is more than just a player as he's regarded as a leader. Which is an exceptional attribute that will make him stand out from the rest of the squad. "He organises the team and [does] a lot of coaching on the pitch, and these are some of the things you don’t see. He is selfless; he’s a good human being. Bongz looks after the younger ones and the team," said Mokwena speaking to the media.

'Ben 10' as he's affectionately known in the football fraternity, has made 39 appearances in Tshwane Giants. He's been mostly used as a super substitute and comes in just after the half-hour mark. Then had to control the competitive Sundowns midfield and lead them to work together. Surely, he would love to play more often, but at the same time, he can use his experience to benefit the young players.

Sundowns' coach spoke about their new signing before the Pirates game

(Source: www.idiskitimes.co.za)

Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns will battle for the all-important maximum points at Loftus Verfeld Stadium on Saturday night. What's on everyone's mind is the availability of the former Pirates star Thembinkosi Lorch who recently made headlines for signing for their arch-rivals Downs. There have been videos of him preparing for his new journey at Chloorkop. Now, it would be interesting to see if he'll be part of the side that will face his former team. Although it would be a bitter-sweet moment for Nyoso as he's been part of the Soweto giants for almost a decade.

Nevertheless, the Downs head coach Rulani Mokwena has spoken about this matter as the fans are wondering if he'll make his debut against his former side. Lorch does have information about his former teammates which can be used when he's on the pitch. Surely, it might be a gamble that Mokwena would want to take just for the sake of three points. As he knows that an attack-minded player has the ability to destroy the opponents. But Mokwena feels thar he'll Jace to battle for his position in the starting eleven, nothing will be given on a silver platter. “Lorch comes into the team, and he knows he has to earn the right to play,” he told local journalists.

Furthermore, the Tshwane giants do have a deadly attack which will give the coaches a headache when it comes to choosing their starting eleven. The 30-year-old star has been looking fit, despite all the challenges he had go through last year. "He has to fight like everybody else has to fight for a place in this team and meritocracy is such an important part of my coaching principles," said the Downs coach speaking to the media.

The talking point in the Pirates and Sundowns game: Did Miguel deserve the red card?

(Source: Twitter.com - @NanguSompisi)

The football fraternity has been divided when it comes to the red card that was given to Miguel Timm in the previous weekend clash of the heavyweights. As Mamelodi Sundowns were able to get an upper hand in terms of numbers Orlando Pirates, as they appealed for a foul on their goalkeeper Ronwen Williams when he was still in his box trying to begin a counterattack. That's when Timm and his teammate Olisa Ndah obstructed him which caused a delay in the attack. Also, Williams wasn't pleased with the whole incident as he felt that it wasn't necessary for an opposition player to be impatient when the play began at Downs back.

Looking at the replays and screenshots, it's visible that the Pirates midfielder shouldn't have tried to impede the shot-stopper in his own half. Although the fans were arguing about the fact that Williams wasn't touched by any Buccaneers player, but he had all the rights to raise the incident to the match officials. Even though Timm was already booked, he should have done better, since he knows how football works. The opposition plan worked, as they were able to get one Pirates player removed, but that didn't necessarily they would win the game.

Also, when the referee reversed the yellow card that given to Ndah despite being part of the Pirates players that were involved in obstructing Williams from releasing the ball from his hands. It wasn't even a danger zone, for the Buccaneers players to cause any unnecessary fouls. Although the match finished on a 1-1 draw, Sundowns will look back at this game and wonder what they could have done better to walk away with a victory.