Motsepe on Mosimane, Motaung and whites
MAMELODI Sundowns president Patrice Motsepe says he is 100% behind Orlando Pirates today and is inspired by their crusade on the African continent. Bareng-Batho Kortjaas asked him . . . Angelo Tsichlas, what is his job? He’s head of technical and is making a good contribution to the club. Head of technical to? What is his role exactly? His designation is special adviser to the president. But also, he is head of technical. Pitso reports to him. And he is actively involved with the technical part and is making a contribution on the academy. Keagan Dolly is a shining product of that academy. Does he excite you? Ooh! Keagan spent three years at the academy. What we are learning is that we should let the young players from the academy go to spend two or three years playing at other clubs. You’ve got this Khaya Shozi and we must be careful we don’t put too much pressure on him. There’s also Percy Tau. [Jabulani] Shongwe, who plays for Wits, comes from us. [Buhlebuyeza] Mkhwanazi at Wits, [Wandisile] Letlabika at Celtic. The boy who plays for under-23 and Maritzburg [Kwanda Mngonyama].
There are many young players who’ve been at the Sundowns academy who play for other clubs. We must continue and I’m confident we’ll get smart players in future. Not long ago unruly Sundowns supporters pelted Pitso with missiles and said he must go. They said that about Pitso last year, and the year before. They are the bloodline, lifeline of Sundowns. They own the club, it’s theirs. We’re just subjects or servants. But the sort of behaviour we saw is totally unacceptable. It’s embarrassing. Are you happy with Mosimane’s application? I’d like to see Pitso coach Sundowns for many years to come, not just for consistency. But every year you learn, you become more experienced, more exposed. I’d really like to keep him and the technical team for many years. But just like all of us, we’ve got to succeed and deliver.
If I don’t, even in the companies I started, my shareholders will say “Patrice, we like you, but you must give way to a smarter, brighter and sometimes an even younger person.” In a nutshell, you’re happy with Pitso? I’m very proud of Pitso. We all support him and the technical team. If we don’t have confidence in our black coaches, in our black management and our black expertise, who will? We’ve got a huge duty to give our black coaches and black executives opportunities to grow and succeed. And I’d also like to see more white players play in the PSL and more white spectators come to watch South African soccer. Why do you think we don’t see them? Listen, it’s incredible how much they watch overseas football. They love football and I think they are coming because the quality of our football is consistently improving. I mean, when you saw Sundowns play Barcelona, there were so many Blue Bulls flags; there were so many white South Africans. That was absolutely beautiful. And we need more of those experiences. The other experience you need is Sundowns dominating Africa like you announced when you bought the club. We’ve still got a long way to go and have to continue looking at our success in Africa from a medium-to-long-term perspective.
Part of that is to focus on the youth and attracting the best players in South Africa and the continent. We must continue with the absolute passion and hunger to do well on the continent. It doesn’t matter how long it takes. I think we have a medium-to-long-term perspective.
Any of the South African teams that do well, we will all applaud them and support them. Like Orlando Pirates, who are playing the second leg of the Caf Confed Cup today? There’s a deep, deep history, I’m talking about; a deep emotional history in the family with both Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates, and Mamelodi Sundowns. I feel a deep sense of pride when Chiefs do well, when Pirates do well and, of course, when Sundowns do well. I’m listening.
I was born in Orlando. We grew up in an environment where everybody loved Pirates. My father was a staunch Pirates supporter. My mother grew up in Orlando so she knew nothing else.
I want to give you another example. It’s like even in business when one of your business colleagues succeeds in Africa, there’s a huge sense of pride.
We really want Pirates to succeed and we’re all behind them because it’s about South Africa. But of course, Kaizer has always been very special; for me personally and for us in the Motsepe family. Why is Kaizer so special? Kaizer Motaung has contributed to South African football more than anybody ever has historically and more than anybody ever can in future. He’s really the father. You’ve got Mandela, and in football you’ve got Kaizer Motaung.
But I must add what Irvin Khoza has done has made huge contributions.
Not just at Pirates, but also in football.
We really must always find time not just to recognise, but also pay our respects to them. Kaizer, Irvin and Danny Jordaan have done excellently, have made huge contributions in 2010.
I mean these are the people who we really should all be thankful for; and should be proud of. In 1985 the PSL was a R1.3million business. Today it is R800-million. What is your view on this great growth? There are very few industries which have had a significant amount of black involvement and black support.
Like you’ve mentioned, the taxi industry is one, the PSL is another.
We should feel so proud and should support these industries. And, of course, recognise that, as South Africans, both black and white, there’s a lot we can do and a lot we can achieve.
And in that the contributions of Kaizer are unequal; and, as I said, Khoza also made huge contributions, particularly when he took over Pirates. Huge.
You can’t imagine South Africa with an Orlando Pirates that was struggling before Khoza got involved.
It is not good for South African football. You need a Kaizer Chiefs, an Orlando Pirates that’s doing well. And you need all other teams to do well. Sundowns as well. Speaking of Sundowns, for you to consistently compete in Africa you have to do well at home, especially in the league. Sundowns must continue to do well. There’s no question about that. There’s serious and fierce competition from a number of clubs.
I think there are about five or six excellent clubs. Anyone of those has a capacity to win the league and it is good for South African football. We have to compete and continue to do well in relation to these five or six excellent teams. And those teams are Sundowns and? (Laughs). Five or six excellent teams. Is Bongani Zungu staying or going? We are really trying to assist him to go overseas. Part of our duty at Sundowns is to help our players realise that dream. And our policy, always, is we have to provide the best environment for our players.
If we cannot provide that, we have a duty to support them to either join other teams in South Africa or, as in the case of Zungu, to help him go and play overseas. And every other player at Sundowns who wants to go overseas. There’s a sense of pride for us to be able to say: you know, look at this boy, he played for us, went overseas, did well, plays for Bafana Bafana. What is your view on Tokyo Sexwale’s bid for the Fifa presidency? I’m totally biased and prejudiced. Whenever one of our very own, and in this instance Tokyo, or any other South African is positioning to occupy a very senior position like the Fifa position, we don’t just all support 100%, but we feel very, very proud. And I wish Tokyo all of the best because it is something that, as a South African, would make all of us very proud.
Kaizer Motaung has contributed to South African football more than anybody ever has historically and more than anybody ever can in future. He’s the real father