Mamelodi Sundowns coach breaks his silence at the lack of respect shown to the team’s players.
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Mamelodi Sundowns coach breaks his silence at the lack of respect shown to the team’s players.
After an excellent first half of the 2021/22 season, coach Rulani Mokwena has questioned midfielder Andile Jali’s lack of recognition and acclaim.
Jali, 31, is at the top of his game, his fitness indisputable, and he is one of the first names on the team sheet in all competitions as Sundowns fight for several titles.
However, since Hugo Broos’ appointment, he has been ignored for national team selection, with the Dutchman favoring a younger lineup.
Mokwena, on the other hand, said that if he wore the colors of one of the Soweto giants, he’d get more notice and admiration in Mzansi.
“He’s been like that throughout the season, and these [Sundowns] players don’t receive the credit they deserve,” Mokwena added.
“Perhaps the yellow jersey is the issue; if they wore another color, they would receive national exposure and appreciation.”
“It’s unbelievable, Andile Jali has played 2042 minutes, you know, when was the last time you heard Andile Jali play so many minutes?”
“You run out of superlatives when talking about AJ, this is the mentality, I was reading the other day when Pep Guardiola was talking about Rodri and how important it has been for City to have him play at a certain level every single game, this is the mentality, I was reading the other day when Pep Guardiola was talking about Rodri and how important it has been for City to have him play at a certain level every single game, this is the mentality, this is the mental
“It’s critical that your deep-lying playmaker or six is a guy who has a lot of consistency and is constantly at the proper level when you have possessional football as a playing-model or idea because any decline in performance exposes the squad.”
Since returning to South Africa in 2018, Jali has won three consecutive league titles with Sundowns, following a four-year stay in Belgium’s top division with Oostende.
