Sundowns' Mngqithi: Gallants have ‘one of the most dynamic midfields in SA’

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Manqoba Mngqithi has named Miguel Timm, Celimpilo Ngema and Ndabayithethwa Ndlondlo as the danger men for Marumo Gallants in the Nedbank Cup final.

The Brazilians are on the cusp of a domestic treble in the final against Marumo Gallants at  the Royal Bafokeng Stadium on Saturday. Mngqithi said Downs need to be wary of the Limpopo team's “dynamic” midfield trio.

Timm, Ngema and Ndlondlo are among the players Gallants coach Dan Malesela has built this team around, together with Thabo Mnyamane, Lehlohonolo Nonyane, Mahlatse Makudubela, Katlego Otladisa and Joseph Molangoane.

“The good thing about teams and games against Dan Malesela is that his teams are ultra-offensive, his teams just won’t sit back and absorb pressure,” Mngqithi said.

“We will be going all out for each other, which is going to make it a very interesting encounter for the spectators. The profile of that [Gallants] team has improved from last season.

“Last season we lost a game against them that we should not have — when a goalkeeper becomes the man-of-the-match it summarises what the game looked like. Unfortunately when you don’t take your chances you get punished — you see teams going out of competitions solely because they did not take their chances and not because they played badly.”

Mngqithi explained the important roles played by Timm, Ngema and Ndlondlo.

“The good thing about Dan’s team is that it has three very important players that make that team function. Miguel Timm is grossly undervalued in the league but is one of the best central midfielders.

“It is Ndlondlo whom I regard very highly — very dynamic, good in counter-pressing, good in the passing game, full range of passing and also scores goals. He is very important to that team.

“They also have Celimphilo Ngema, whom I also regard highly. They call him ‘Zizou’ because he is a very intelligent player, nippy, he sees the opening that he can exploit between the lines, he creates a lot of goals for the team and he is a very important player in general.

“That makes them one of the most dynamic midfields in SA and it is something we should look at very closely. They also have offensive fullbacks who can cause us problems if we are unaware.

“I must also say that the Ivorian [Sede] Dion has done tremendously well for them,” said Mngqithi.