Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Rulani Mokwena has lifted the lid on why the club were so keen to sign Teboho Mokoena and Surprise Ralani in this transfer window as they gear up for a frenetic second half of the season that will also include another shot at Caf Champions League glory.
Mokoena has arrived from Sundowns’ Tshwane rivals SuperSport United for what is believed to be a SA record fee for a domestic transfer, while Ralani was, in some ways, a surprise capture from Cape Town City given that he is already 34 years old.
Mokwena admits Sundowns had been hoping to sign Mokoena for some time, and believes he will be key in helping to break down opponents who ‘park the bus’. “Teboho has had huge admiration from the club for a couple of windows now. He represents the new breed of SA footballers that are being produced,” Mokwena says.
“What is surprising is that many people would think Teboho is recruited mainly from a defensive perspective to try to improve the team from there, but a closer look at his profile seems to suggest that offensively, as a central midfielder, there is a greater contribution to make to the team through the qualities he possesses.
“In relation to all the other midfielders that we have, offensively he is showing better possibilities. The biggest one is, when you think of Teboho you think of a midfield player that averages 2.5 shots at goal per match. There are even strikers in the PSL that don’t get two shots on goal in a game.
“When you play against re-enforced defensive blocks that sit a bit deeper, one of the key tools to counter that is shots taken from outside the box. In this regard he is probably the best in the country with regards to that.
“Having lost Hlompho [Kekana], and the qualities that he could provide that have helped the team to be so successful over the years, what was important was to try to find the profile of a midfielder that could assist us with regards to unlocking defensive blocks with longer range passes and shots.”
Mokwena admits that there were eyebrows raised when the club made a move for Ralani but, in this case especially, age is just a number. “Ralani’s recruitment clearly brings a lot of question marks, particularly because of his age. But in football, the most important thing is always try to bring in the right player.
“And sometimes that right player is not a player between a certain age. The right player is because of the needs of the team.
“We have decided to go in this direction because of the profile of Ralani. You look at him in terms of contribution to Cape Town City and you make a direct comparison to the type of player he is, the average quality in the PSL and its availability in the market, and what you have in relation to the direction you want the team to go towards.”
Mokwena says Ralani’s potential contribution to the team is clear when you look at his performance numbers in the PSL. “If you are trying to make sure the team is ready for Champions League, there are certain parameters that the team has to meet to be competitive on all fronts.
“Ralani is what we would call an outlier. There is a huge difference between his numbers and the average performance in the PSL. He is already contributing on average 1.4 scoring opportunities per match as an offensive midfielder. The average in the PSL is 0.378.
“He is averaging 4.1 successful dribbles in a match, as compared to 2.3 on average for offensive midfielders in this league. Not only that, even his defensive game ... he is winning duals at 1.1 [per game], as compared to the average in the PSL of 0.018.”
Mokwena says the experience of the winger and his professional attitude was also a factor as it should allow him to slip straight into the Brazilians’ set-up.
“His numbers clearly suggest he is a player who can come in and immediately contribute to improving the squad. He is a player with the right technical and tactical qualities.
“Then we were looking at the experience of playing in Europe and having already acclimatised to playing in SA. He is a SA-born player with such high quality.”
TimesLIVE
Mokwena reveals why Sundowns were so keen to capture the signatures of Mokoena and Ralani
Image: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images
Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Rulani Mokwena has lifted the lid on why the club were so keen to sign Teboho Mokoena and Surprise Ralani in this transfer window as they gear up for a frenetic second half of the season that will also include another shot at Caf Champions League glory.
Mokoena has arrived from Sundowns’ Tshwane rivals SuperSport United for what is believed to be a SA record fee for a domestic transfer, while Ralani was, in some ways, a surprise capture from Cape Town City given that he is already 34 years old.
Mokwena admits Sundowns had been hoping to sign Mokoena for some time, and believes he will be key in helping to break down opponents who ‘park the bus’. “Teboho has had huge admiration from the club for a couple of windows now. He represents the new breed of SA footballers that are being produced,” Mokwena says.
“What is surprising is that many people would think Teboho is recruited mainly from a defensive perspective to try to improve the team from there, but a closer look at his profile seems to suggest that offensively, as a central midfielder, there is a greater contribution to make to the team through the qualities he possesses.
“In relation to all the other midfielders that we have, offensively he is showing better possibilities. The biggest one is, when you think of Teboho you think of a midfield player that averages 2.5 shots at goal per match. There are even strikers in the PSL that don’t get two shots on goal in a game.
“When you play against re-enforced defensive blocks that sit a bit deeper, one of the key tools to counter that is shots taken from outside the box. In this regard he is probably the best in the country with regards to that.
“Having lost Hlompho [Kekana], and the qualities that he could provide that have helped the team to be so successful over the years, what was important was to try to find the profile of a midfielder that could assist us with regards to unlocking defensive blocks with longer range passes and shots.”
Mokwena admits that there were eyebrows raised when the club made a move for Ralani but, in this case especially, age is just a number. “Ralani’s recruitment clearly brings a lot of question marks, particularly because of his age. But in football, the most important thing is always try to bring in the right player.
“And sometimes that right player is not a player between a certain age. The right player is because of the needs of the team.
“We have decided to go in this direction because of the profile of Ralani. You look at him in terms of contribution to Cape Town City and you make a direct comparison to the type of player he is, the average quality in the PSL and its availability in the market, and what you have in relation to the direction you want the team to go towards.”
Mokwena says Ralani’s potential contribution to the team is clear when you look at his performance numbers in the PSL. “If you are trying to make sure the team is ready for Champions League, there are certain parameters that the team has to meet to be competitive on all fronts.
“Ralani is what we would call an outlier. There is a huge difference between his numbers and the average performance in the PSL. He is already contributing on average 1.4 scoring opportunities per match as an offensive midfielder. The average in the PSL is 0.378.
“He is averaging 4.1 successful dribbles in a match, as compared to 2.3 on average for offensive midfielders in this league. Not only that, even his defensive game ... he is winning duals at 1.1 [per game], as compared to the average in the PSL of 0.018.”
Mokwena says the experience of the winger and his professional attitude was also a factor as it should allow him to slip straight into the Brazilians’ set-up.
“His numbers clearly suggest he is a player who can come in and immediately contribute to improving the squad. He is a player with the right technical and tactical qualities.
“Then we were looking at the experience of playing in Europe and having already acclimatised to playing in SA. He is a SA-born player with such high quality.”
TimesLIVE
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