Manqoba Mngqithi (Gallo Images)
Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Manqoba Mngqithi lamented his side’s defensive frailties as they edged a 4-3 win over a resurgent AmaZulu in a PSL thriller at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Sunday.
Reigning PSL Player of the Season Themba Zwane scored a nine-minute hat-trick to hand the defending champions a hard-fought victory in a tightly contested encounter.
The scoreline was much closer than what joint-head coaches Manqoba Mngqithi and Rhulani Mokwena would have wanted after late goals by AmaZulu duo Luvuyo Memela and Sandile Khumalo.
Mngqithi said that the expansive manner that Sundowns employ during games will always lead to a greater risk of conceding goals as they did in Sunday’s clash.
“If you kill with a sword you must also expect to die with a sword,” Mngqithi told SuperSport TV. “Because we are a team that builds from the back we are bound to make such mistakes and learn from them.
“At times, mistakes become your very good lessons.
Mngqithi went on to add that his side, who were undergoing a transitional stage after a managerial change, would take important lessons from the match.
“The biggest lesson is that if you still have opportunities to score you should take them,” Mngqithi added.
“You should always look to score more and especially in the second-half teams will always tend to turn the game upside down.
“But I wouldn’t say it was a crisp performance that put us under a lot of pressure there were just slight mistakes tactically which we can correct.”
Sundowns next face Stellenbosch FC in a league clash this Saturday.
Kick-off is at 18:00.
