Rulani Mokwena twice whispered in Percy Tau’s ear… expresses his admiration for Bafana star

Any sharp-eyed footballer follower would have seen Rulani Mokwena whisper to Percy Tau twice on Saturday 11 March at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium.

The first whisper came before kick-off, and the second came after Mamelodi Sundowns had smashed Al Ahly 5-2 on Match Day Four of Group B of the CAF Champions League. 

The win cleared the path for Sundowns to enter the knockout stages as they moved to 10 points, leaving former African champions Ahly in third place with four points. 

Sundowns have won three of their four fixtures, with the other one a draw against Ahly in Cairo, Egypt. 

On the other hand, Ahly have only managed one win and a draw. The other two results were losses.

And on Saturday, the second whisper came after Tau’s stunning strike when he took his Bafana Bafana teammate Aubrey Modiba to the cleaners to find the back of the net. 

However, Tau’s goal was not enough to get the Egyptian giants back into the game as Peter Shalulile sunk in a late brace. 

The brace added onto goals by Marcelo Allende, Themba Zwane and a thunderbolt strike by Teboho Mokoena.

But, one thing was clear – at least from the whispers – Mokwena adores Tau, whom he has previously referred to as his son, despite the eight-year age gap between them.

RULANI MOKWENA EXPRESSES HIS ADMIRATION FOR BAFANA STAR 

“I said it before the game, and I will say it again, I really reserve comments on Percy Tau,” Mokwena told the media. 

“Percy knows exactly what I think of him. After the game, in the end, I whispered to him. He waited in the tunnel.

“He is an incredible human being. You must see when Percy is in South Africa. He comes to my house. 

“The first thing he does when he gets to my house, he takes off his cap. I’m talking about Bafana international. A player who has played in the [UEFA] Champions League and the English Premier League.

“His first sign is his respect. And good players have this thing of being good human beings.” 

The red-hot Brazilians mentor continued: “But I don’t want to speak much about Percy because he is not a Sundowns player, and I’m very biased. So, whatever I say will come out across a little bit of the other side.” 

“I focus a lot on my players because I’m very proud of them and the great opportunity and blessing to be their coach.”

PERCY TAU ON FORM 

During the January transfer window, Sundowns tried to lure the ‘Lion of Judah’ back to Chloorkop to no avail. They will possibly try to get him back ahead of next season.

The 28-year-old frontman has turned around his fortunes in recent games, reclaiming his place in Bafana. 

Al Ahly’s coach Marcel Koller, also attested to how Tau has found his mojo back. Koller noted that he was very happy to have Tau back on board and commended his level of fitness in their previous games. 

Tau will set his sights on making it into Hugo Broos’ final squad to face Liberia in the crucial two-legged tie on 24 and 28 March, starting at home.

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