They have now changed to Sundowns
Masebe Qina: Sphe, congratulations on your impressive 3-0 win over Orlando Pirates last Sunday, where you also walked off with the Man of the Match accolade. Did you expect to win by such a big margin in Bucs’ home ground?
Sphelele Mkhulise: It was a very tough match, and I am happy that we won. But it wasn’t an easy match, make no mistake. We badly needed the win after we have been dropping some points in some of our matches lately. We did expect the result to go in our favour, but we knew that it was going to be a tough game. (Laughs) Ing’jabulisile i (I was happy for the) award.
MQ: The draw for the CAF Champions League quarter-finals was conducted in Cairo last Friday and Mamelodi Sundowns will be playing against Al Ahly. What a mouth-watering clash. What was your reaction to the draw?
SM: I think it’s a good draw and, personally, I am excited about it. I am happy because we will be playing against one of the best teams in Africa. The game will give us an indication of how far we are when we compete with some of the best clubs on the continent.
MQ: As the team, did you expect to get Al Ahly at this stage of the competition?
SM: Ja, we were expecting it because at this stage of the competition, you expect to play against any team. Once you reach the knockout stages of the Champions League, it means that all the teams there are the best and you expect to play against any one of them. We expected it because against any of the teams at this stage of the competition, it’s going to be difficult.
MQ: And there is an added spice about the fixture as you will be coming up against your former coach, Pitso Mosimane. What do you expect to happen when you come up against coach Pitso?
SM: It’s going to be a tough game, that’s all I’m expecting. Obviously, we want to win and that’s what we will be going all out for. We want to advance to the next stage of the competition and only a win will take us to the semi-finals of the Champions League, so we want to win.
MQ: For you personally, what will it mean to come up against a team coached by the mentor who gave you a chance to play for the first team at Sundowns?
SM: Look, I am very happy that we will be playing in the quarter-finals of the Champions League against the Al Ahly side that is coached by coach Pitso. What would make me even happier would be for us to beat them as one of the best teams in the competition and qualify for the semi-finals. A win would also serve as a reminder that we are also one of the best teams in the competition and on the same level as them. It would also serve as a motivation that we can go all out and win the Champions League.
MQ: Don’t you think that the fact that coach Pitso knows almost every one of you inside out regarding your strengths and weaknesses from the many years he spent at the Brazilians will put you in a position of disadvantage against the Red Devils?
SM: Like I said, it’s going to be a tough game and we know that very well. But we will also do our homework and analyse them to get every detail of how they play so that we can apply our findings in the game. it won’t be an easy game because coach Pitso knows us well, like you say, bro.
MQ: You have forced your way into being a regular in the starting lineups at the Tshwane giants. How has the journey been since you started playing for the first team? SM: I am enjoying each and every moment
Since breaking into the Mamelodi Sundowns first team line-ups last season, Sphelele Mkhulise’s star is continuing to rise as he has been playing regularly, becoming one of the influential players in the team’s DStv Premiership title chase. The Downs youth product, whose rise to the top was likened to that of Percy Tau by former coach Pitso Mosimane, says hard work and perseverance have taken him from being a ball boy to sharing a dressing room with some of the accomplished players in the league and is not intending to stop working hard any time soon. In this interview with Soccer Laduma’s Masebe Qina, Mkhulise talks about the upcoming clash with Mosimane in the CAF Champions League and how they want to remind people about being one of the best teams on the continent. The Pietermaritzburg-born midfielder also talks about the disappointment of exiting the Nedbank Cup, as well as the heartache of losing their first league match this season against Kaizer Chiefs. of it and I think I am improving. With that said, I would like to thank my coaches and teammates for their support and assistance in what I do. They are always there for me to help me to improve. They are always encouraging me to improve and I appreciate that. I am learning each and every day and I am enjoying it. I analyse my games and get to see where I make mistakes and try to rectify them in the following game.
MQ: Take us back to when you learnt for the first time that you would be playing for the first team. How did you receive the news?
SM: I remember I was at home in Pietermaritzburg and relaxing and the first team was preparing to go to Rustenburg for the pre-season when I received the call that I should urgently report to the club for pre-season. The team was under coach Pitso and coach Manqoba (Mngqithi) at the time. I was very excited when I received that call and I immediately told myself that my time had arrived and that I should make good use of it to stay in the first team. That was back in 2018 and I had been playing for Richards Bay FC (on loan from Sundowns) in the previous season.
MQ: How did your family react to the big news?
SM: They were very happy for me. They wished me luck in leaving home to realise my dreams. My parents and siblings were very excited for me.
MQ: The Chloorkop-based outfit has some of the talented players in the league, as is an open secret. How did you feel about mingling with seasoned campaigners like captain Hlompho Kekana and Andile Jali? SM: Ngang’thukile (I was nervous) and ngijabulile (happy) at the same time. They (the senior players) were very welcoming and that made it easy for me to adjust to what was going to be my new normal. The way they welcomed me made it easy for me to focus, but to tell you the truth, I was nervous. I mean, all of a sudden, I found myself training and playing with the best players, some of whom I had been watching on TV and I had been a ball boy to some of them. It was like a dream to me.
MQ: Tell us more about those days of being a ball boy! SM: I started being a ball boy when I was still playing for the Maritzburg United U15 team. So, when I arrived at Sundowns, I continued being a ball boy. I was 16 years old when
I arrived at Sundowns.
MQ: How did Maritzburg allow such a young talent to leave?
SM: Sundowns scouted me while playing for a Pietermaritzburg select team that played in a tournament in UJ (University of Johannesburg). The tournament was called FNB Lucas Radebe Football Festival, and it was for the U15 age group. Sundowns saw me in that tournament in 2011.
MQ: At such a young age, it’s not unusual for players to feel homesick when they are separated from their families. Did you experience any of that?
SM: Eish… In the first six months, I was always thinking about home. It was the first time that I had been away from home for such a long time. But as time went on, I made friends at the academy and I got used to it. Because I knew what I wanted, I persevered, and I never looked back.
MQ: How do people back home and your family feel about your rise to stardom?
SM: Bajabule kakhulu (They are very happy). Most of the people from my family are now supporting Sundowns. They have converted from being supporters of other clubs to Sundowns. They are happy to see me playing for Sundowns. Some were supporting Kaizer Chiefs, and some were Pirates supporters, but they have now changed to Sundowns.
MQ: You previously also had a spell with Black Leopards, on loan from Sundowns. How was the experience at the Limpopo-based side?
SM: It was difficult because it was the first time that I was playing professional football. Leopards gave me my first chance to play professional football, and it wasn’t easy, but I tried my best and gradually I adjusted to their set-up and the league (NFD). It was a good experience, and I learnt a lot from the club.
MQ: Now that you are playing regularly and being one of the best players in the league in your position, what is your next target?
SM: The main thing to do is to continue working hard with the aim of
improving. Every time I get a chance to play, I want to help the team.
MQ: What is it like working with the three coaches, Manqoba Mngqithi, Rhulani Mokwena and Steve Komphela?
SM: It’s exciting because we are learning a lot from them every day. They are the best coaches in South Africa and it’s exciting to be training and learning under someone who is the best in what they do. That helps you to improve as a player. They are teaching us a lot of good things about life on and off the field and it’s enjoyable to work under
them.
MQ: Can you paint a picture for us on the roles of the three coaches, who does what in training between them? SM: (Laughs) Angazi ngizokuphendula kanjani yazi (I don’t know how to answer you on that one). We just train normally as a team under the coaches. It’s like any other normal training, like in any other team.
What has he brought to the team to add to what the other two coaches had been doing? SM: Coach Steve is helping us a lot, especially in dealing with the mental side of things. We are happy about his presence and he always tells us that there is nothing as important as sharp minds. We are learning a lot from him and we are strong mentally because of his teachings.
Honours:
MQ: Coach Steve is known for being a very good motivator.
MQ: You guys were the favourites to win the Nedbank Cup after you thumped Pirates 4-1 in the quarter-finals. How disappointing was it to lose to Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila FC in the semi-finals?
SM: We were very disappointed because we know that we could have won the game if we had applied everything well, like we were told by the coaches. It was so disappointing.
MQ: Would you say that you underrated TTM because they haven’t been doing well in the league and are at the bottom of the log?
SM: No, there is no team that we underrate and we take each and every game seriously and we work hard to prepare for all the games. As you know, in the PSL (DStv Premiership), each team is capable of beating the other. We always work hard and listen to the instructions of the coaches and we help each other on the field.
“I immediately told myself that my time had arrived.”
MQ: You lost for the first time in the league this season against Kaizer Chiefs, even though you were overwhelming favourites for a win that Sunday afternoon. How did that one feel?
SM: We are a team that doesn’t like to lose at home, and it was so disappointing that after we played that well in the first half, they came back in the second half and scored two goals in two minutes. Losing to Chiefs was a bitter pill to swallow, but I think the loss gave us the motivation that going forward we should try to kill the games as soon as possible by converting our chances. We should focus for the whole game and work hard.
MQ: What would you say to critics who say that Sundowns have relied too much on Peter Shalulile for goals and that’s why you struggled for goals and assists when he got injured?
SM: Peter is very important to the team, just like any other player in the team is. Every player is important to the team and Peter is one of those players who are important because he scores goals and provides assists and is a hard worker, just like any other individual at Sundowns. His quality is helping the team.
MQ: AmaZulu FC and Golden Arrows have put you under pressure in the title race. How’s the feeling in the team about the two teams?
SM:
AmaZulu and Arrows are playing well, but our focus is on our own race. We know what we want and that’s what we are focusing on and we are taking it one game at a time and we will see how it goes at the end of the season.
MQ: You will finish the season without a trophy if you don’t win the league. How much do you think your chances are with Usuthu breathing down your necks?
SM:
As you know, Sundowns is fighting for every trophy available in the league every season. We will fight for the league and the Champions League until the end.
MQ: Pitso, we can’t leave you without asking you about the reports linking you with AS Monaco in France. How much do you know about that?
SM: At the moment, I know nothing about that. No one has ever told me anything about it.
MQ: Players like Percy Tau, Keagan Dolly and Bongani Zungu have been allowed by Sundowns in the past to go and further their careers abroad. Do you have any ambitions of playing overseas?
SM: I think it is every player’s dream to play overseas. It’s every player’s dream to play abroad and in the national team. And I would like to promise the supporters that we will fight until the end to make them proud. We love you guys. ❐ @MasebeQina