Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena has explained why the likes of Gaston Sirino and George Maluleka have played peripheral roles this season.
Sirino is widely considered as one of the best attacking talents in the DStv Premiership and his status with Sundowns as a key figure was reaffirmed when they resisted several bids from Al Ahly for his services.
The Uruguayan made no secret of his desire to join the Club of the Century and reunite with his former coach Pitso Mosimane in Cairo – but after making peace with the fact that he was an indispensable member of the squad – he’s found first-team opportunities hard to come by in the 2021/22 campaign due to the emergence of new talent.
“Why is Gaston not playing? It’s very difficult because you’d have to ask yourself why Neo Maema is playing and then of course why is [Thabiso] Kutumela playing? Sometimes there are players who are not playing because we can only play 11,” Mokwena explained after their win over Royal AM.
“Gaston, he’s not the only one. There’s Vila [Sibusiso Vilakazi], Aubrey Modiba and even players like Lesedi Kapinga, George Maluleka. These players and it’s not easy.
“You understand that when you come to training in a space where possible I am not going to be playing, possibly I am not going to be part of the team, but I still go on with the business of training as if I am going to be playing and be professional and give my team the best.
“This is the mentality that Gaston possesses, Vila possesses, Aubrey possesses. And obviously, when they get the opportunity, the responsibility is on them to speak by performance, not to speak by showing long faces or disgruntlement.”
Mokwena went on to laud Sirino who’s contributed 30 goals and 32 assists in 135 games for the league champions since his arrival from Bolivar in January 2018.
“The actions and louder communication come from the performance on the pitch and that’s what Gaston did. He showed hunger and a good appetite to try to help the team. As long as they do that, then it provides a space for good and healthy competition in the team,” Mokwena added.
“Only 11 can play. We are fortunate that we have a very good squad where anyone can play. It’s good competition, healthy competition and a good headache for us. At times we are unfair and unfortunately, that’s the reality. We are unfair to some of the players and I always say we are very close to the players.
“I say to the players, like Mshishi for example, we are best friends, but when they are not playing, we are only friends. The best falls off and there’s an element of unhappiness. But it’s the right way. Players must be unhappy when they don’t play.
“But with that unhappiness, you’ve got a different way of showing it. You can show it with a long face or you can show it by performing on the pitch and putting your hand up to assist the team.”
