That rattled the Spaniards

“When my teammates heard that I had been invited to have lunch with Mandela…”

Aaron Mokoena remains the single most-capped Bafana Bafana player in the history of South African football. He spent more than 16 years playing abroad and captained the national team in the historic FIFA 2010 World Cup staged on African soil. In this interview with Soccer Laduma’s Thomas Kwenaite, he reveals how the recent spate of shootings at taverns across the country brings back memories of the Boipatong Massacre when his mom disguised him as a girl by forcing him to wear a dress to escape apartheid police and Inkatha Freedom Party assassins. He also talks with much nostalgia about the dramatic 2002 World Cup, captaining Portsmouth and how much Lucas Radebe prepared him to take over the armband as Mzansi’s captain.

Thomas Kwenaite: So, what has Mbazo been doing since retirement?

Aaron Mokoena: I have established my Academy and (been) doing lots of traveling across South Africa and

abroad promoting these Football Bootcamps to search for that raw hidden talent. But of course, I was at one stage assistant coach to my former Ajax Amsterdam manager Jan Olde Riekerink at Cape Town City and seeing through my coaching badge. I’ve also been busy planning the next chapter in my life, which is something that I’ll be officially announcing soon.

TK: Tell us more about your Academy.

AM: When I thought of establishing my Academy, I once asked myself why am I still the most-capped footballer in the history of Bafana Bafana after a decade? Why is Benni McCarthy still the all-time leading goal scorer? And why Portia Modise remains the most-capped and also top goal scorer in the history of women’s football in SA. Then I thought of the Toekomst (Ajax Amsterdam Youth), where I still feel my proper football development started (although at 16, I was a little bit older). So, I thought how could I contribute in developing a different breed of players in both girls and boys to break our records. That’s how the Aaron Mokoena Academy

was born.

TK: You also obtained a UEFA Licence…

AM: My UEFA Licence has helped me in terms of my growth and given me a deeper understanding of the game. But the most important aspect that I got to learn was to now think as a manager and no longer as a footballer. To become a teacher of the game and how to manage players, conduct sessions, when to coach and when to let the sessions flow. The beauty about this course is that it includes psychology as well, which is the most crucial part, in my view.

TK: Who are the players that have emerged from your Academy since you established it?

AM: The Aaron Mokoena Academy, partnering with Remember Elite Sport Academy (RESA), dedicated ourselves to produce excellence in our youth. We are proud to announce that the most prominent graduates are Mduduzi Mdantsane

and Thabang Monare, who have both been nurtured from our Academy. They are the cream of the products that have emerged from this Academy, although there are a few more that are featuring for different Motsepe Foundation Championship sides.

TK: The recent spate of violence, with mass shootings at taverns across the country, reminds one of the time when your mom dressed you like a girl during political violence in your area. Tell us about that frightening experience.

AM: The old apartheid regime fermented mass shootings masterminded by police and Inkatha Freedom Party members, who got access to my neighbourhood with the express purpose to kill, especially young boys, and I was 10 years old at that time. My mom heard that they were advancing into our township with the intention to kill young boys. Desperate times call for desperate measures and mom looked for my sister’s dress and put it on me! I was a big baby, but it was the exact size even though my sister was four years older. We vacated the house under darkness and evaded the murdering force and made it safely to the community hall, which was protected by members of the Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK combatants) and of course, some of the community members were also armed with weapons. We survived the night, but tragically, in the morning when we were supposed to go to school, we discovered that 45 people had been murdered during the night in what came to be known as the Boipatong Massacre.

TK: Moving on, how did you react when you heard that Jomo Cosmos had been relegated to the third tier?

AM: I love Jomo Cosmos and everybody knows that the team gave me my big break into professional football, but honestly, it wasn’t really a shock that they’ve been relegated to the third tier of South African football because it has been difficult at Jomo Cosmos for the past few seasons and some of us saw it coming. Hopefully they will somehow find a way to work their way back to the top tier.

TK: Few people are aware that before joining Ajax, you were actually in Germany.

AM: My time at Bayer Leverkusen was the toughest period of my career. I travelled to France for the U23 Toulon tournament and had a great tournament – that’s where Bayer Leverkusen saw me. Bra J (Jomo Sono) came over to France to negotiate my transfer and I signed a three-year contract. I was 16 years old at that time and so, imagine being shipped off to a foreign country at that age, living alone in a studio apartment, ridtraining ing a bicycle to and back. I didn’t know how to cook, and let me tell you that it was the worst time of my life. I just couldn’t settle down and wanted to come back home. But the reality was that I had signed a three-year contract with Leverkusen. I knew that Ajax Amsterdam also wanted me badly because they were impressed after I had excelled in this Toulon tournament that also featured Inter Milan, Liverpool, PSV Eindhoven, Feyenoord, Flamengo and Bayern Munich and was declared the Best Defender of the Tournament.

TK: How did you wriggle your way out of the Leverkusen contract?

AM: It was a very frustrating and confusing time. I thought I was going to Ajax Amsterdam, but it was obvious that Bra J had made good money in transferring me to Leverkusen. But clearly my state of mind and happiness had not been considered in the whole transaction. I think I played less than 10 games and out of desperation called Rob Moore, who personally came to Leverkusen accompanied by the Ajax Amsterdam lawyer, and both got me out of Germany. Moore certainly played a huge role in how my career took off in Europe because I quickly settled down at Ajax, even though I was only 16 years, and the conditions were conducive.

TK: How did you survive Europe for so many years when today’s youngsters fail to stay a single year? AM: I think it’s the choices of the clubs and the agents who are making decisions for the players. Trust me, homesickness is worse if you can’t find a way to overcome it and you will be back home sooner that you think. It doesn’t matter how good or how skilful you are. Some agents don’t even know where their players reside abroad. I understand football is business, but the happiness of players should be paramount in order for you to perform to your optimal (level). When players go abroad, they need to know that they are foreigners and need to work five times harder than the locals. I believe we can export more players abroad, but the choice of country where a player is going will also play a huge role. For instance, you just cannot take a 16-year-old to Russia – that would be disastrous due to their extreme weather conditions.

TK: What advice did you give Percy Tau when he joined Brighton & Hove Albion?

AM: I told him and his lawyer/ agent that the Netherlands or Belgium would be best destinations for a South African to establish themselves. I felt Percy would familiarise himself better with the set-up and the demands of European football in those abovementioned countries, establish himself and then work his way towards attracting the attention of bigger clubs in Spain, England, Germany, France or Italy.

TK: You took over the Bafana captaincy from Lucas Radebe. What is it about him that you admire?

AM: A very strong character, very competitive, perseveres, a people’s person off the field and a jolly fellow with a good work ethic. Very boring to share a room with, ha, ha, ha. He used to play jazz music non-stop, eish. But Lucas was unselfish in

that when I arrived at the national team, he took me under his wing and I roomed with him. I learned so much by merely observing him and how he did things. In addition, he was always willing to share his thoughts with me and what it required to lead your country.

TK: And you did lead your country in the biggest stage of all, the 2010 World Cup!

AM: For me, it didn’t matter much, just to be part of the firstever World Cup on African soil meant the world to me. I felt humbled to captain the country. I remember when we had to acknowledge the supporters in an open-bus parade around Sandton, I saw the Rainbow Nation in all its glory, all races together in support of football. I’m saying for me there had never been another incident with a bigger significance in terms of displaying what South Africa could and should be like. Walking down the tunnel to line up for the national anthem against Mexico… man, I can’t express my feelings. I still get goosebumps when I talk about that moment. My interception and subsequent pass to Kagisho Dikgacoi, who laid on for Shabba to score, was an absolute dream.

TK: What stands out when you remember the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan?

AM: I was 20 years when we played at the 2002 World Cup in

Japan and Korea and practically thrown into the deep end. The game against Spain remains the highlight. I remember Raul opening the score as early as the fourth minute, but Benni equalised and I think that rattled the Spaniards. Then (Gaizka) Mendieta put them ahead, only for Lucas Radebe to bring the score level 2-2! We played without fear and pushed forward for a winning goal. We were that confident, but unfortunately for us, Andre Arendse made a mistake and Raul scored their third goal. Yeah, it was an incredible match full of twists and turns, but to have managed to stretch Spain like that will stand out for me as long as I live. TK: Tell us about the time Madiba came to visit Netherlands and both you and Benni were invited.

AM: Oh yes… when President Nelson Mandela came to Amsterdam, myself and Benni were invited, as well as legendary Ruud Gullit. Remember the Dutch legend had always held strong views about segregation and was a strong anti-apartheid activist (Gullit dedicated his 1987 Ballon d’Or award to then imprisoned Nelson Mandela). We went around the Amsterdam canals and we all had lunch together, which was a fantastic moment too. Everyone idolised Madiba in Amsterdam and when my teammates heard that I had been invited to have lunch with Mandela, they were green with envy and couldn’t wait for me to turn up at training so they could ask me how was it to shake his hand. Unbelievable!

TK: Are we on the right track as Bafana?

AM: I’m sure Bafana Bafana will come right. We just need to qualify for next year’s Afcon in Cote d’Ivoire (postponed to 2024), then we can build from that. But we need the junior national teams, from U17, U20 and U23, to be playing regularly as well so that we can have players seamlessly graduating. The hiring and firing of coaches as well is not only costly financially but retards our progress as the new coach dismantles the existing team and starts rebuilding. I know South Africans love their football, but we need to build and unfortunately to build needs patience, planning, energy and passion. But I still believe that we can turn the corner, definitely.

TK: Thank you very much, Mbazo. AM: You are most welcome!