Sundowns can be to Bafana Bafana what Barcelona were to Spain‚ says Kekana

22 February 2017 - 12:38 By Marc Strydom
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Mamelodi Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana believes that Mamelodi Sundowns can play a similar positive role transferring their club success to Bafana Bafana as what Barcelona did for 2010 World Cup winners Spain.

African champions Sundowns wrapped up one more continental trophy on Saturday with their 1-0 2017 Caf Super Cup victory against TP Mazembe at Loftus Versfeld.

That victory confirmed that Caf’s team of the year‚ who had the coach of the year in Pitso Mosimane and local-based player of the year in Denis Onyango‚ were without doubt the best club side in Africa in the 2016.

Kekana urged whoever takes over as new Bafana coach from sacked Shakes Mashaba to pick Sundowns players so they can similarly influence the national team’s fortunes.

“I think it is always important as players to influence the national team‚" Downs and Bafana defensive midfielder Kekana said.

"If you look at Spain back in the days‚ the Barcelona team were winning everything and that used to influence their national team.

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“As Mamelodi Sundowns‚ we are at a stage where we understand each other as players.

“So it would be nice to see at least four or five of our players in the national team‚ to add value and to try and influence the other players‚ showing them that at Sundowns this is what we do for us to achieve what we have.

“So I would like to see my Sundowns team-mates in the national team‚ for sure.”

Examples of great club sides’ success being transferred to their national teams are plentiful.

The Dutch ‘Total Football’ team of the 1970s drew players and their playing style from a successful Ajax Amsterdam.

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Barcelona supplied the core of the players and a perfected ‘tiki-taka’ playing style that made Spain European champions in 2008 and 2012‚ on either side of their World Cup triumph.

Even the transformation of Downs’ opponents on Saturday‚ Mazembe‚ into a continental club force again in the 2000s has had a positive effect on their previously under-achieving Democratic Republic of Congo national team.

- TMG Digital/TMG Sport

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