Rotation won’t affect Mamelodi Sundowns quality says Swallows coach Musa Nyatama

With the Brazilians having already sealed a record sixth successive title, Nyatama believes even if his opposite number Rulani Mokwena rotates the squad the quality in the line-up will not differ much. 

"Sundowns has a very good squad, if you take out Mshishi, there's Mailula, there are a lot of good players. So, we are not going into that game undermining that they have won the league already but we want to fight. Hopefully, we get the maximum points," Nyatama said.

Swallows desperately need points to move up the table to avoid relegation in the six games left. 

Nyatama says it could go in any direction at this point. 

"We are taking every game as it comes for now. You can see this season, it's very difficult especially down there. From number six, you can see that number six has 31 points. They are not guaranteed that they will survive, so the teams at the bottom are also coming up. We want to win every game; we'll see where we end up. We don't have any target," he added.

Mokwena on the other hand says he looks forward to facing Nyatama. He coached the Swallows mentor as a Pirates player between 2017 and 2020. 

"It's a team that I expect to give their all, to fight. They're in a very difficult position. Also, I'm proud of Musa Nyatama, he's someone I hold in very high regard as a former football player and as a human being. So, I've got to give him the respect that he deserves," Mokwena said.

The Downs coach admits he has a “soft spot” for the Dube Birds. 

"It's also a club that I like, it's a club from Soweto where I was born so it's one of the clubs that I have a soft spot for. Not as soft as Sundowns," Mokwena concluded.