DURBAN — After his side clinched their third successive DSTV Premiership title, Sundowns co-heach coach Manqoba Mngqithi paid tribute to the club’s leadership structure.
“One must understand the investment that is pumped into the club. At times we do get the credit but the investment from the bosses is a big help,” said Mngqithi.
Masandawana all but secured the title on Wednesday night following a dominating 3-1 win over SuperSport United at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium.
ALSO READ: Mamelodi Sundowns hammer SuperSport United to win historic fourth straight league title
In typical lethal Sundowns fashion, they dominated the first half, scoring three goals before slowing down in the second 45 minutes. Mngqithi did highlight that he was frustrated with his troops slowing down in the second half but in light of them doing what they needed to do to notch the title, who can really blame them?
Mngqithi also alluded to the exhaustive work that his club do in all departments which has been the backbone of their success.
“At Sundowns everyone works hard. I am proud of the players. We have physios, analysts, coaches doctors who work hard. Before every game, we watch four to five matches of our opponents in action to understand each of their players. That allows us to realize what to expect structurally. I would like to thank the families of everyone working at Sundowns because they suffer the most,” said Mngqithi.
ALSO READ: Five key moments that defined Sundowns’ historic league campaign
Though his side dominated the league yet again, Mngqithi understands that they still need to improve and cannot afford to rest on their laurels if they want to do better in continental football next season. Despite their domestic success, Downs were recently outdone in their CAF Champions League quarter-final tie against Al Ahly which they lost 3-1 on aggregate. This indicated that they are not yet exactly a complete team.
“We still do have a responsibility to see where we went wrong and be critical of ourselves. Even though everybody is speaking highly of how we dominated matches, I still challenge the players to sit back and introspect on their own numbers individually,” said Mngqithi.
Sundowns will next be in action against Maroka Swallows on Saturday where they will be expected to receive a guard of honour by the opposition.
ALSO READ: Peter Shalulile, Themba Zwane and Thabiso Kutumela lead the way in PSL Award nominations
They will close out the season with games against Bloemfontein Celtic and Cape Town City.
IOL Sport