Rulani Mokwena celebrated exactly one year in charge as head coach of Mamelodi Sundowns on the night they played out to a goalless draw with Petro de Luanda and Soccer Laduma looks back at what's been like for him.
Sundowns confirmed Mokwena as head coach on October 24, 2022, after he had previously worked as co-coach with Manqoba Mngqithi.
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Since taking charge, Mokwena has not lost a DStv Premiership match, which is an incredible record for the coach and club. He was in charge of 20 Premiership matches last season, as Sundowns recorded an impressive 15 wins and five draws during that period, earning them the title with seven matches to spare.
They are unbeaten in the Premiership after eight matches this season, continuing their dominance in the league.
It's in the knockout competitions where Mokwena has not been able to crack it just yet, as he waits to win his first major knockout competition as head coach of the club. He came close in the MTN8 final recently at Moses Mabhida Stadium, but a penalty shootout went in the favour of Soweto giants. They were booted out of the Carling Knockout recently by TS Galaxy via a penalty shootout and they only have the Nedbank Cup as the remaining domestic cup competition to challenge for.
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The big one will no doubt be the CAF Champions League, after they were knocked out in the semi-finals last season by Moroccan giants Wydad Casablanca.
The African Football League will provide Mokwena another opportunity to lift a trophy, with Al Ahly next in the semi-finals after they beat Petro over two legs in the quarterfinals.
Mokwena's tenure has not come without any challenges, but he has kept Sundowns competing at a high level, despite the busy schedule.
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