Feutmba: Wydad won’t know what hit them!
REVOLVING COLUMN
On Sundowns doing well in Africa
Mamelodi Sundowns are very consistent because the first thing they did right was implementing a philosophy that they are now working with. They also have the type of players that are fitting well in that philosophy. That is why they are doing as well as they are doing now in the CAF Champions League. They knew exactly where they wanted to be and they followed their philosophy. It is not only in the continent but in the Absa Premiership as well where Sundowns have been doing very well and even today, even though they are not on top of the log, they are still a threat to the log leaders. They have established their way of playing and have stuck to it for many years, hence it is working now. In addition, if you look at Sundowns, they are surrounded by people who have a knowledge of football and the contribution they have made makes the team the formidable side it is today. It took years of implementation and now they are reaping the rewards. When you talk of Sundowns now in Africa, everybody stands up and listens. Even though there’s still room for improvement, Sundowns are currently one of the best teams in Africa.
On where the club got it right
In the PSL, in the past six to seven years, you cannot talk about the league and not mention Mamelodi Sundowns. They have been consistently doing well and fighting for honours. I think that is also due to the vision of the president of the club, Mr Patrice Motsepe. Another thing they do right is that when they buy players, they buy players that will fit into their philosophy. They have that philosophy that they put in place and they do everything looking for it to go with that philosophy. They also look at players with a professional attitude and a winning mentality. The head coach, Pitso Mosimane, has been very strict with his philosophy and that is why the team is doing well. Every player in the Sundowns team is a winner, they have been taught a winning mentality by coach Pitso, which is why they are all winners.
On Downs vs Wydad this weekend
On Saturday, Sundowns will play their African rivals, Wydad Casablanca, and I can tell you now, Sundowns have already qualified for the quarterfinals, but they have a score to settle with Wydad. The fact that they have qualified already, knowing coach Pitso, he will definitely look to put one over Wydad. I do not think they will go to that game with the mentality that they have qualified. They will want to continue winning so that they have the morale of the team as high as it can get. They know that beating Wydad will do their confidence the world of good. I am sure even the Sundowns supporters would want nothing more than a victory over Wydad, who have hurt them not once but a couple of times before. They will definitely paint Lucas Moripe Stadium yellow on the day and will be hoping for nothing but victory over their African rivals. Even though they are in pole position two points clear of Wydad, meaning that a draw would do, but still having more points to Wydad does not equate to beating them. Sundowns supporters will want to celebrate victory over Wydad on Saturday. The players, technical team and management all know that. I can tell you now, Wydad will not know what hit them on the day!
On Sundowns’ CAF and PSL dilemma
If you look at where Sundowns are today, they are built to compete on many fronts, and you will see that they are a formidable side that always competes for honours both locally and internationally. Coach Pitso has built the character of these players. Even when they play, they always have a very strong bench. They have a squad to challenge and win both the Absa Premiership and the CAF Champions League. Look at how Kaizer Chiefs were under pressure to win their game against Golden Arrows last weekend, because they know that Sundowns are behind them and should they drop points, they will catch up with them. The league now is very interesting because of that. Take nothing away from Chiefs though, they are doing very well currently. This is the type of championship race we want to witness every season in the Absa Premiership, not a league that goes into the last five games of the season with the champions confirmed already. I can guarantee you now, this one will go down to the last day … it will go down to the wire. There are still 30 points to play for and those are a lot of points, so anything can still happen.
On why some players fail to make it at Sundowns
You know, sometimes clubs all over the world make an error of signing one or two players thinking that they will fit in and do well for their team, only to find out at a later stage that they made a mistake. It happens to the best teams and Sundowns are no exception. However, they hardly get it wrong. Ninety percent of the players they have signed in recent years are exactly what they need to add value to the team.
Roger Feutmba, Former Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder