Pitso Mosimane led the giants of African soccer to a bronze medal on the Fifa Membership World Cup this week. (Photograph: EPA / Khaled Elfiqi)
South African coach and serial winner Pitso Mosimane added one other feather to his hat as he led Al Ahly to their joint finest efficiency on the Membership World Cup in Qatar.
Pitso Mosimane planted the seed of his future at SuperSport United. He then moved to Mamelodi Sundowns the place, regardless of the sky being the restrict, he soared to stratospheric heights, greater than Jack’s beanstalk. At Al Ahly he’s comfortably perched among the many constellations.
Mosimane led the giants of African soccer to a bronze medal on the Fifa Membership World Cup this week. Having been vanquished by eventual champions Bayern Munich within the semifinals, the Pink Devils beat Brazilian aspect Palmeiras 5-Four on penalties to clinch third spot.
The end result was the Egyptian champions’ joint finest end on the world membership competitors, matching the feat in 2006 with their golden era of gamers, together with Mohamed Aboutrika, Wael Gomaa and Angolan ahead Flavio.
It was yet one more accolade so as to add to an extended record of achievements since his senior teaching profession started in 2001. They embody main Sundowns to Caf Champions League glory and securing a historic treble with the Tshwane giants in his closing season on the helm. With Al Ahly’s victory he grew to become the primary South African, participant or coach, to win a Membership World Cup medal.
Nonetheless, in typical perfectionist Pitso fashion, the Kagiso-born coach just isn’t completely pleased with a third-place end.
“Not the medal we wished to get, however a sensible one. We ought to be humble and recognize getting a medal for Africa. We will be again subsequent yr and struggle for an improve,” stated Mosimane after the victory over Palmeiras.
The assertion demonstrates Mosimane’s starvation and drive. With it the 56-year-old is already throwing down the gauntlet for any challengers to the Pink Devils’ standing as African Champions, and plotting a return to the World Cup.
The nine-time African champions have been drawn in group A for the 2020/21 season of the Caf Champions League competitors. They’re alongside Congolese aspect AS Vita Membership, Simba SC of Kenya and Sudan’s Al-Merrikh, and shall be favourites to complete on the summit of the group.
Mosimane had detractors who had been fast to level out that when he took over as coach, his predecessor René Weiler had executed all of the laborious yards for him, together with profitable the Egyptian Premier League.
Nonetheless, the South African nonetheless needed to oversee the Champions semifinal victory over Wydad Casablanca over two legs, in addition to the ultimate over bitter rivals Zamalek, thereby reserving Al Ahly and his place on the world stage.
Dropping to the eventual champions of the competitors and a European powerhouse that has solely misplaced 5 video games in supervisor Hansi Flick’s 68 video games in cost, is nothing to be ashamed of. Nonetheless, as a consequence of Mosimane’s penchant for the elegant, he’ll nonetheless be hungry to enhance even additional.
And having tasted the world stage, he’ll wish to return many times. And the one means he can do that’s if he creates an analogous dynasty to the one Flick has created at Munich.
Mosimane is off to a great begin in that regard. Since he took over from Weiler in October 2020, the 2-Zero loss to Bayern in Qatar was the primary time he has tasted defeat – after overseeing his first 22 video games and not using a single loss.
Whereas for this season he should be content material with a bronze medal, it goes with out saying that he’ll do every little thing in his energy to make sure his aspect make a return to the competitors subsequent season. Then he shall be hoping to not go one higher, however two higher and win the competitors.
“We achieved the purpose that all of us needed. I don’t wish to look smug, however we performed very effectively within the competitors. I’m trying ahead to higher achievements with Al Ahly within the Fifa Membership World Cup sooner or later,” stated Mosimane after the bronze medal sport.
“We confirmed an incredible efficiency in the present day in opposition to Palmeiras and likewise in opposition to FC Bayern Munich within the earlier sport. I hope to win the Caf Champions League title this season and are available again to play within the subsequent version of the Fifa Membership World Cup.”
For now, they may give attention to securing the Caf Tremendous Cup after they tackle Moroccan aspect RS Berkane on Wednesday, 17 February. In the event that they emerge victorious it is going to be Mosimane’s second trophy, after he led Sundowns to victory over TP Mazembe in 2017. DM
