Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane: I have a manageable squad

by Phumzile Ngcatshe

Monday Jul 23, 2018. 11:06

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane says dealing with big squad numbers is always a challenge for coaches.

The reigning Absa Premiership champions’ boss was speaking to the media after their 2-1 win over Kaizer Chiefs in the Shell Helix Cup at FNB Stadium on Saturday.

Mosimane has explained why he doesn't want a big squad, claiming that keeping too many players can poison the dressing room atmosphere.

In order to compensate for any depth lost by loaning out or selling players, Mosimane said he likes to have versatile footballers in his squad.

"I've dealt with the issues of numbers. Everybody says Sundowns has a lot of players. We are less. At this point in time, we have about 24 or 25. And it's good if it's like that because you can manage it," Mosimane was quoted by KickOff.

"The challenge is to have people playing in different positions. That's why I like players who can play in more than one position. If you have 32 players, then they become unhappy the camp, the mood.

"And how do you train them if you have 40 players? You'd need three pitches to achieve the physical demands.

"Sometimes you have to play a full game, that's 20, plus two goalkeepers. What about the others? It also means you must have more coaches.

"When (Lionel) Messi is on the pitch for Barcelona, they have a good chance to win. When (Cristiano) Ronaldo is on the pitch, his team has more chance to win. It's not the same, so that's the challenge."

Meanwhile, the 2016 African champions will be hoping to bag their first win in this year’s CAF Champions League as they will host AS Togo-Port on Friday.