Mosimane wants Champions League titles and to develop more European stars

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane has labelled the team that won four trophies in one year as his ‘Super Team’, saying his challenge is to see his players such as Bongani Zungu playing in the German Bundesliga as well as in the Italian Serie A.

Just after signing a new four-year contract, ‘Jingles’ reveals why he is hurt when he looks at the badge of clubs such as Al Ahly, Wydad Casablanca, and Esperance.

The four-time Premier Soccer League (PSL) title winner speaks on why striker Jeremy Brockie failed to score for his club and declines to comment on George Maluleka who is bound to join the Brazilians next season.

“Let’s be honest if I say the ambition is to win the Absa Premiership, you will say no Pitso you’ve won it four times - that means you don’t have ambition,” Mosimane told PowerFM.

“I won the MTN8 [SAA Supa8] as my first trophy at SuperSport United and the whole is to…I’m looking at the emblem of Al Ahly, so many stars.

“I look at the emblem of Esperance four or three stars. I’m looking at TP Mazembe three or four and I look at Wydad [Casabalnca] they have and I look at Raja [Casablanca], they have one or two.

“So, I’m looking at those stars and say my team is the only one with one star, it’s lonely. I want to add more stars, I don’t think we can still say we want to win the Absa Premiership. People will say Pitso you’re underachieving. For me [the challenge], it is the Champions League.

“We must go to the Club World Cup, it’s a big stage and to be treated like Real Madrid. The boys have never seen anything like that, business class [flights], top pitches and it’s a World Cup.

“I’m trying to build a team. You know the 2016 team was a super team. I’m not saying the team I have now is not good. I believe we could have won the league this year.

“The super team won four trophies [Telkom Knockout Cup, PSL, Champions League, and Super Cups] in one year. Sometimes it’s like you’re bragging but it’s true. I had the CBD [Leonardo Castro, Khama Billiat, Keagan Dolly] there. I had Percy Tau and Themba Zwane to be on top of that, what a team.”

On his players heading to European leagues such as Bongani Zungu, the former Bafana Bafana manager hopes Dolly will bounce back for Montpellier.

“Yeah, you want to do [take players overseas]. You look at Percy, he played against Barcelona, he’s got pictures against Barcelona. Percy played against PSG [Paris St. Germain], against Manchester United…Real Madrid, those are the biggest clubs in the world,” he added.

“He has done that and he’s got pictures. I’m not talking about selfies, but pictures in action. I wanted to see Zungu in La Liga but the move didn’t happen. I want to see Dolly back in Ligue1.

“That’s my vision. Why can’t we have one player from South Africa in Serie A? In the German Bundesliga, the last time we had [Steven] Pienaar at [Borussia] Dortmund, [Siyabonga] Nkosi and [Sibusiso] Zuma were there.

“Once the team plays at the level of the one in 2016, 71 points in the league, 23 wins out of 30. It’s not a fluke and once you have that, the power of the Euro comes. You can’t stop it. I’m going to lose the players.

“I think Rivaldo [Coetzee] is the next one, it’s unfortunate he’s having injuries and the Keletso’s [Makgalwa]. Rivaldo is a European player that boy. I must start again to rebuild.”

Mosimane also addressed the New Zealand international who was loaned out to Maritzburg United but declined to comment on new-signing Geroge Maluleka from Kaizer Chiefs.

“JB [Brockie]..it didn’t really happen let’s be honest. I gave him many opportunities, the goals he scored for SuperSport United, he never scored them for us at Mamelodi Sundowns,” he continued.

“You can’t blame the guy. He was scoring double digits all the time. Well, I don’t want to talk about George until the team announces George.

“I must observe the protocol and you what you know, I know what I know.”