Mamelodi Sundowns coach Manqoba Mngqithi insists there is no reason to panic after being eliminated from the MTN8 on Sunday in Durban.
The Tshwane giants lost 1-0 to Stellenbosch FC and 2-0 on aggregate to bow out in the semi-final stage.
‘Stellies’ will now face Orlando Pirates in the final on Saturday, 5 October, at a venue yet to be confirmed by the PSL.
Despite the loss, Mngqithi believes his team has improved since Wednesday’s performance. He is optimistic that they will come back stronger as they begin their CAF Champions League and Betway Premiership journey after the FIFA International break.
MAMELODI SUNDOWNS COACH SEES AN IMPROVEMENT IN HIS TEAM AFTER LOSS TO STELLENBOSCH
“To be honest, I see an improvement from the midweek match that we played with Stellenbosch,” he said after the match.
“But it’s just that when it does not translate into goals, you always feel like it was very bad. But the truth is if you look at the chances we created in both legs. The story could have been different. However, I must also give credit to Stellenbosch because I think they were a little bit hungrier than we were in the first-leg.
“We only came back strong in the later stages of the match where we could have salvaged something and probably even won the match.”
WHY MANQOBA MNGQITHI IS NOT PANICKING DESPITE BEING ELIMINATED FROM THE MTN8
“I am not panicking at this stage because I know sometimes the MTN8, all the years that I have been here at this club, I don’t know what happens in the beginning stages of the season because we always struggle sometimes,” he said.
“At this stage, it is worse because most of your key players are the ones that are not hitting the top gear. But we are hoping that we will still come back stronger. I am very happy with the substitutions that one made.
“Aubrey [Modiba] at left-back really gave us something after [the] Terrence [Mashego] injury. I also think Thapelo [Morena], on the other side, did very well. For me, I think it’s not bleak, but it’s just unfortunate.”
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