Coach Rulani Mokwena Looks Ahead To Nedbank Cup Encounter

Mamelodi Sundowns will be looking to bounce back from their defeat over the weekend and secure a win in the Nedbank Cup Last 16 on Tuesday evening. The Brazilians come up against Mathaithai FC at the Lucas Moripe Stadium in their bid to qualify for the quarter final stage of the cup competition.

Speaking ahead of the match, Co-coach Rulani Mokwena spoke about the eagerness of his side to turn their fortunes around and get back to winning ways as soon as possible:

“We’re looking forward to it, we’ve tried to collect as much information as we possibly can. We’ve tried to profile them from a qualitative perspective, if you look at who they are and where they are in the ABC Motsepe. They played on Sunday and they won 1-0. The situation for them is a bit complex in the league, but because of their focus in the cup they have managed to do very well to get to this stage. Hopefully the information that we’ve collected comes in handy for us to win the match tomorrow.

Tomorrow’s encounter will be The Brazilians’ second in the Nedbank Cup competition this calendar year after they opened up their campaign with a resounding 4-0 win over GladAfrica Championship side Richards Bay FC in early February. Bafana Ba Style tasted defeat for only the second time this season over the weekend and Mokwena shed light on the mood in the camp:

“We played extremely well against Maritzburg, we created a lot of chances and stuck to the game plan. We were happy with the personality of the team, we played with a lot of aggression and intensity.”

The Brazilians have had to rotate heavily this year with a number of injuries impacting the the coaches selections, despite this Coach Rulani shared his delight to see a number of players step up to the plate when called upon:

“Lesedi [Kapinga] has received a chance, Brain Onyango has been in, Haashim Domingo has been outstanding when he’s been given a chance and [Sphelele] Mkhulise has also come in and put his hand up.”

“[With regards to team selection] we try to merit and reward players who deserve the opportunity to play, based not just on performances in matches but also body language and attitude in training.”

After 6 successive games on the road The Brazilians make their return to home soli as they do battle in the Nedbank Cup Last 16 against Mathaithai FC at the Lucas Moripe Stadium on Tuesday evening, the game will be broadcast live on SuperSport Channel 202 and kick off will be at 18H00.