“Tau will do us proud abroad”
Coach looks to Brockie for goals
Pitso Mosimane may be wondering how the Mamelodi Sundowns attack would cope without Percy Tau, but he’s confident the young forward will live up to expectations if his proposed R50-million move to the English Premiership goes through.
Sundowns begin life without Tau today when they take on AS Togo-Port in the CAF Champions League, with the PSL Player of the Year on the verge of completing a move to Brighton & Hove, subject to a work permit.
Mosimane will have to look elsewhere to see who leads his attack and replace a player who contributed 13 goals and 17 assists overall for the Brazillian in 38 games last season.
Mosimane is adamant Tau will succeed abroad. “Game attitude, playwise, yes, he will make it overseas. He’s got good temperament. He can handle the pressure. He’s a big player.”
But the Sundowns coach added the Bafana star has one aspect of his game which needs massive improvement. “His finishing can be a lot better,” he said. “We all know about it. We’ve spoken about it and once he gets it right, he’ll survive in any league.”
Mosimane said Tau has his blessings after the star initially seemed to be at loggerheads with the club’s hierarchy, staging a protest by not reporting for camp as he tried to force a move.
“He’s been good to us. He served us loyally. He’s a player from our development structure and for him to break the transfer record fee from an SA team to overseas fills me with joy. I’m happy for him. I wish him well.”
Mosimane, meanwhile, will look to Jeremy Brockie to lead his attack this afternoon in Togo, as Sundowns aim to register their first win in Group C and move closer to leaders Wydad Casablanca and Horoya.
“This is a game between two teams who are looking for points to move from the bottom of the table.
“AS Togo know that if they don’t beat us they are out of it. It’s a tricky match because we play them back-to-back [today and next Friday].”
Sundowns could unleash their new signing Jose Ali Meza today, should his registration papers be ready before kickoff.
Mamelodi Sundowns are still looking for their first win in Group C as they take on AS Togo-Port in the CAF Champions League at the Stade Municipal in Lomé, Togo, today (3pm SA time).
The challenge facing the Brazilians, who have two draws from two outings, is that they are missing a couple of influential players in Percy Tau and Gaston Sirino.
Tau is expected to finalise a move to English Premiership side Brighton & Hove Albion, while Sirino is suspended.
Sundowns are third in the group with two points behind Wydad Casablanca and Horoya, while Togo-Port are at the basement having suffered two losses.
On paper, the Tshwane side have a good chance of collecting maximum points in Lomé.
But winning matches on the road on the continent is easier said than done, though the 2016 champions’ head coach Pitso Mosimane has maintained that his charges are still good enough to win without Tau and Sirino.
On a positive note, midfield workhorse Andile Jali, who signed for the club recently, is registered for the tournament and is available.
“It’s a good thing that I am back in the country and I am playing for a team that’s in the Champions League,” Jali told the club’s website.
Togo-Port are not in the best of forms – with six defeats in their last 10 matches.
They are participating in the Champions League for the first time since they were formed two years ago.
Sundowns forward Anthony Laffor said he expected a physical approach from the West Africans, but he’s not overly worried about the opposition, especially because he’s encouraged with the way Sundowns have prepared since arriving in Lomé last week.
“The good thing is that the pitch we are playing on is the one that we’ve been training on, so everything has been going well,” Laffor commented.
“Where we find ourselves is where want to be in the group stage, [but] where we are in the group is not where we are supposed to be. We need to win our game and go to South Africa to win our game [against TogoPort on July 27], then we are number one or two.”