'There’s nothing special about us,' says Rulani Mokwena despite Sundowns' dominance

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena has once again put the team’s continued success and dominance on the pitch down to hard work behind the scenes and proper planning for each opponent they play against.   

This after Sundowns continued their strong start to the season in the Caf Champions League when Mokwena’s handed Bumamuru of Burundi a 4-0 defeat in the first leg of the tournament’s second round of qualifiers ahead of the group stages.   

A brace from Lucas Ribeiro and a goal apiece from Lesiba Nku and Peter Shalulile saw Sundowns beat the minnows in a game played in Tanzania on Friday due to a lack of facilities that meet Caf standards in Burundi.   

Sundowns have one foot in the group stages of the Champions League as it will be hard for Bumamuru to overturn the deficit in Pretoria where Sundowns have proven tough to beat.   

Masandawana’s strong start in the Champions League is a build-up to their excellent start in the new Premier Soccer League (PSL) season where they have won all six of their DStv Premiership matches and are also in the semifinals of the MTN8.   

The PSL giants will be hoping to go all the way in the continental tournament this season and win it for the first time since 2016 after they fell in the semifinal hurdle in the previous campaign.    

Mokwena gave the impression that Bumamuru weren’t easy to beat despite the heavy scoreline suggesting otherwise.   

Speaking to the media in Tanzania, Mokwena credited his players and back room staff for the excellent work.   

“We are playing in a way that of course we watch the opposition and we put in a lot of work behind the scenes, and we know the type of players that they have,” Mokwena said.   

“A player like (Ali) Valentin is an explosive striker that gives good possibilities. I must say, I was surprised that (Dieu Tombo) Bangala, the number five, wasn’t playing but maybe that is also why he didn’t play the previous match in the league game.   

“ (Mokono Elie) Eldhino is a very good player in the midfield, but it’s a good team with good physicality, good speed and can hurt you on counterattack if you don’t have good rest defence and good counter pressing actions,” the young tactician said.   

“But we have got a way of playing now that we want to play a certain way, adopt certain things and change certain things in relation to the opposition, but there’s nothing special about us.   

“We just happen to work very, very hard and have very, very good football players in our team.”   

Sundowns will now turn their focus back to the Premiership where they have a tough match against Orlando Pirates at Orlando Stadium on Wednesday (7.30pm).   

After that, Masandawana will have to prepare to host Kaizer Chiefs in the MTN8 semifinal second leg at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday, September 23.