Mngqithi says Sundowns won’t take Richards Bay for granted
"It is one club that is very exciting, brings a lot of fire," says Mngqithi.
Manqoba Mngqithi, coach of Mamelodi Sundowns (Gavin Barker/BackpagePix)
When it comes to poster boys in cup competitions, it does not get any bigger than Mamelodi Sundowns’s Aubrey Modiba, who has been synonymous with the Nedbank Cup with his single gold medal in this competition as he won it under Stuart Baxter during their time at SuperSport United.
ALSO READ: Sundowns wary of ‘giant killers’ Richards Bay
His coach at Masandawana, Manqoba Mngqithi says his side cannot afford to take any opponent for granted as they are in the hunt for a domestic treble this season, having already bagged the MTN8 and are in pole position to retain the DStv Premiership. In case you missed it, Downs drew Richards Bay in the round of 32.
“Every team that is in the last 32 believes that they can go through and that makes the cup itself a very interesting contest for every team because they feel they have something to achieve either by getting their team into the next round or by being seen by the big teams,” said Mngqithi.
“There are many players who came from this tournament and most clubs that we have in the league have a player or two who comes from that space. We cannot take this club for granted, it is one club that is very exciting, brings a lot of fire and we don’t want to be among those victims because this cup can always give you a thing or two,” Mngqithi added.
While the brand Richards Bay has been around for a while, they do have unknown players who will look to hold their own against Sundowns, which is what this kind of tournament is all about.
“Just like any other FA cup, it is a cup of dreams where boys from rural areas also believe they have a chance to showcase their talent and be snatched by the big teams in the country. Because of that motivational factor, it makes every team that we are playing against at this level to be very competitive and very difficult to plan against. Almost all of them will be playing off the cuff because they are motivated to play against the big teams,” the Bafana Ba Style co-head coach said.
