Can Sundowns pull off ‘The Invincible’ feat? Teko Modise weighs in
Former Mamelodi Sundowns star Teko Modise has shared his thoughts on whether the club can achieve ‘The Invincibles’ feat of finishing the DStv Premiership season without a loss.
The 2016 CAF Champions League champions won their seventh consecutive league title with six games to spare after hammering rivals Kaizer Chiefs 5-1 at FNB Stadium on Thursday, 02 May 2024.
After 25 matches, they are still unbeaten in the league. Their great run of form saw Sundowns register 19 victories and six draws. Masandawana has scored 47 goals and conceded only nine.
In the modern era of football, only a few teams have achieved the seemingly impossible: going an entire league season undefeated. These include Juventus, who dominated Serie A in the 2011/12 season, and Arsenal, forever etched in history as the “Invincibles” after their golden 2003/04 Premier League triumph.
Five games stand between Sundowns and a historic feat: becoming the first SA team to finish a season undefeated.
Retired midfield legend Modise fancies Sundowns’ chances of completing an undefeated season. However, he warns of complacency setting in after their league title win, with their next challenge against Royal AM this afternoon [Saturday, 11 May 2024] in KZN proving a crucial test.
TEKO MODISE ON MAMELODI SUNDOWNS’ CHANCES TO BECOME INVINCIBLES
“It’s possible [to finish the season unbeaten], but the challenge becomes on the players because what are you playing for because they have won [the league],” Modise told FARPost.
“I don’t wish to be a Mamelodi Sundowns player, to win the league with six games to go. How, then, do I draw motivation to win matches? Of course, there are records [to be set], but it’s totally different when you’re actually playing for the points.
“I think that’s the challenge that I will put to coach Rulani [Mokwena] and Sundowns. How, then, do you go on? Look at the game against [Kaizer] Chiefs; it was a must-win for them to clinch the title.
“Now that you’ve won, what are you going to do as a coach? You’re going to look at the players that you’ve never used.
“So it becomes a very challenging thing, but knowing how ambitious coach Rulani is, he will try to win every game and maybe be the first team in the country to do it. It will be great; that’s a new challenge for Sundowns.
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