The Mamelodi Sundowns management has accepted that results speak for themselves and appointed former Bafana Bafana captain Neil Tovey and Argentinian Miguel Gamondi as joint coaches until the end of the current Premier Soccer League (PSL) season.
Tovey and Gamondi were appointed caretaker coaches following the departure of Argentinian coach Angel Cappa in December and immediately transformed the Brazilians into a potent combination.
A resounding 5-1 win over Black Leopards under the Tovey-Gamondi tandem was followed by a 4-0 success against Dynamos — and with rivals Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs faltering, Sundowns vaulted spectacularly to the top of the PSL log.
Initially linked with the big-spending Sundowns following the departure of Cappa were high-profiled PSL coaches Pitso Mosimane (Supersport United) and Gordon Igesund (Ajax Cape Town).
But Sundowns president Patrice Motsepe has seemingly had a change of heart and opted to leave the winning team of coaches and players intact.
”Our objective is to win both the Premier League title and the Absa Cup,” said Tovey on the Sundowns website. ”It is a lofty objective, but we believe we have the talent and impetus to achieve it.”
The Brazilians reassembled after the festive-season break on Tuesday and will be heading for a training camp in KwaZulu-Natal before the resumption of the PSL in mid-February.
And home-and-away games against Chiefs and the start of the African Champions League tournament will provide an early test for Tovey and Gamondi to show they are the right men for the job.
Boosting their prospects is the imminent return after injury of exciting prospect Lerato Chabangu after a lengthy absence of more than three months. — Sapa