Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Rhulani Mokwena praised news players Thapelo Maseko and Ribeiro Costa Lucas after their official debuts but insisted they will only get better.
The new signings enjoyed a productive debut for Sundowns in the DStv Premiership with Maseko coming off the bench to set-up Ribeiro’s winner in the 2-1 victory against Sekhukhune United on Friday.
Mokwena insisted after the match that Maseko is giving the defending champions something they didn’t have last season.
“This is why we brought him. He gives the team something that we didn’t have last season,” he said.
“A lot of work was done to strengthen the squad in the transfers. At the end of the season I said we won’t do too much business, there will be five coming in and we’ve got our five now.
“And we will settle a little bit and try to improve the team and give them a little bit more confidence.
“They need time. Sometimes I forget myself that [Thapelo] Maseko is only 19. So he’s got a lot of potential and we just have to continue to help him and coach him and try to get him to give even better performances.”
Mokwena also insisted that Ribeiro, who also scored in several pre-season games and seems to have settled in well, will still improve a lot.
“He [Lucas] got good teammates they help each other, they support one another, he will get better,” said Mokwena when asked about Ribeiro by iDiski Times.
“He has to understand the league. The league is a little bit different. You can see even today there are a lot of counter attacks.”
Sundowns are next in action on Wednesday when they will host Kaizer Chiefs at Lucas Moripe Stadium.
