Sundowns seem to have found perfect Nascimento replacement

Mamelodi Sundowns co-coach Manqoba Mngqithi has hinted that they may have found the perfect Ricardo Nascimento replacement.

Nascimento left Sundowns to join Royal AM in January, and the club’s pursuit of a replacement is well-documented.

NASCIMENTO ELEMENTS

Interestingly, as Mngqithi identified Moroccan defender Abdelmounaim Boutouil’s strengths after his debut, he indicated that he had the Nascimento elements.

This comes after he impressed on Saturday against La Passe in the CAF Champions League, earning himself praise from the Sundowns mentor.

The match was Boutouil’s competitive debut for the club following his transfer from Raja Casablanca during the transfer window.

“Technically, he’s unbelievable, he makes less mistakes, he’s got a full range of passing, short, medium or long,” Mngqithi told the club’s media department.

“[He makes] passes that break lines and passes that are targeting in the opposite eight, passes that are tagging the opposite wing-back or full backs, and he can find the striker very easily.

“Technically, you can not falter anything from him, and he’s also very good on set pieces. Aerially he’s a very dominant figure in that space, but his physical condition is not at the right level to make a lot of judgment.”

MISSING GAP

Mngqithi further revealed a former Sundowns player that Boutouil is like in the field of play. That’s the main reason why they signed him to fill the missing gap in Masandawana’s defence.

“We brought him because in almost all of the matrix he’s very close, if not better than what you would get from a Ricardo Nascimento,” Mngqithi added.

Boutouil will be expected to start featuring more frequently for the Tshwane giants in the next coming games. However, it will not be easy to walk in the Masandawana starting eleven despite his experience.

He faces tough competition for a start in the starting lineup. Already the club have five centre-backs; Grant Kekana, Brian Onyango, Rivaldo Coetzee, Rushine De Reuck and Mosa Lebusa.

Masandawana shift attention to the DStv Premiership after a two-week break in the Champions League.

Bafana Ba Style take on a tricky Marumo Gallants, who impressed in the CAF Confederation Cup on Saturday.

Kickoff at Loftus Versfeld is at 19:30.