Mokwena: We are victims of our own success

Mamelodi Sundowns coach, Rulani Mokwena, has labelled his team ‘victims of our own success’ after receiving criticism due to failing win in the last three matches.

Sundowns drew against Cape Town City, Swallows and Golden Arrows. “The desire and the effort to win a football match appeals to me a lot,” said Mokwena during the Nedbank Cup press conference.

“It’s not always easy to win every single match but we try, that’s what we have to continue and try to do. “Sometimes we are victims of our own success.

“The question is: who has won more games this season and who has scored more goals than us this season? So where is the doubt and questions of us not being to score goals and win come from?”

The reigning DStv Premiership champions take on Stellenbosch in the Nedbank Cup. The last time Mamelodi Sundowns played Stellenbosch in Cape Town, Stellies ended Masandawana 15-match winning streak

“We’ve already started with our homework and we’re still going to dig deeper for more information on them as we prepare,” said Mokwena.

“They are a good and difficult team to play against. It’s a very important game for us and we also know how important it is to the football club. We know that we have to play really well in Cape Town to give ourselves a chance to win and progress to the Semi-finals.”

“It’s always difficult to play them. They’re a good and very well coached side and Steve Barker is doing good work at the club. The log position doesn’t reflect or define their quality and performance.

“They’ve also got a very strong midfield with players that have great capacity to cover the ground.”

The match will be played at Athlone Stadium, kick off is 18h00.

MAMELODI SUNDOWNS NEDBANK RECORD
Appearances since 2008:
16
Played: 54
Wins: 41
Draws: 4
Losses: 9
Goals For: 122
Goals Against: 37
Top scorer since 2008: Hlompho Kekana (11 goals), Peter Shalulile (11 goals)

2008: Winners
2009: Round of 16
2010: Quarter-finalists
2011: Semi-finalist
2012: Runners’ Up
2013: Quarter-finalists
2014: Quarter-finalists
2015: Winners
2016: Quarter-finalist
2017: Round of 16
2018: Semi-finalists
2019: Round of 32
2020: Winners
2021: Semi-finalists
2022: Winners

Nedbank Cup Records
Years Played:
16 (since 2008)
Most trophy wins: 4 – Mamelodi Sundowns (2008, 2015, 2020, 2022)
Most wins for a coach: 3 – Stuart Baxter (2013, 2016, 2017)
Most matches played: 54 – Mamelodi Sundowns
Most matches won: 41 – Mamelodi Sundowns
Most goals scored: 122 – Mamelodi Sundowns
Most goals scored: 14 – Peter Shalulile
By Zola Doda

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