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Al Ahly coach Pitso Mosimane is on the brink of his second Caf Champions League trophy as the Red Devils face off against Cairo’s bitter foes Zamalek in Saturday’s Egyptian final at the Cairo International Stadium.
Mosimane could only have replaced a well-known friend and Swiss predecessor René Weiler in the semi-final stage.
But the former Mamelodi Sundowns coach reinforced what appears to be a growing assertion from his new supportive Ahly fan base by negotiating those impressively with a 5-1 aggregate win against arguably the continent’s strongest club in the latter half. decade, the Wydad Casablanca.
If Mosimane leads the record eight-time winner Ahly to their first Champions League win since defeating the Orlando Pirates in the 2013 final, especially at the expense of Zamalek, he will surely enter new realms of popularity with his new club.
TimesLIVE looks at five things that could happen if Mosimane wins a second Champions League title, to add to the medal secured with Sundowns in 2016:
* The coach could take another step towards training in Europe.
It may not happen right away or even in the near future, as Mosimane surely wants to sink his teeth into at least one season, and maybe a few, at Africa’s Club of the 20th Century.
But it’s no secret that former Ionikos, Jomo Cosmos and Sundowns striker harbors ambition to return to Europe as a coach.
And why not?
Mosimanem still only 56 ‚has already made his way to become the first black sub-Saharan African to train Ahly.
And in the north, where it is easier to be observed from Europe, it will contribute to its growing international reputation.
* Mosimane would surely be too expensive even for sunsets
If there are thoughts of returning to Sundowns, where the coach won not only the 2016 Champions League, but also five Premiership titles, a Caf Super Cup and four national cups in eight years, surely a second victory in the main continental competition. Africa would be pulled off the market even for Downs owner Patrice Motsepe.
Mosimane has stated his intention to spread his wings with his signing for Ahly ‚and even if he wins the extended Covid-19 Champions League this year‚ and then bombards next season in Cairo ‚his gaze seems to be fixed on more things important than a return to the PSL.
* ‘Jingles’ would surely never train Bafana Bafana again
Mosimane has already indicated that he felt ill-treated when he was fired in his first stint as Bafana coach after a series of draws.
When Stuart Baxter left work last year, when asked about returning, Mosimane indicated that he would not want to put his career in “the hands of those people” again, that is, Safa, adding that it was “sad to be fired by the owner of a taxi. ” [then-Safa technical committee chairman Fanyana Sibanyoni], a priest [then-CEO Robin Petersen] and a traditional boss [then-vice president Chief Mwelo Nonkonyana]”.
Nothing is certain in football, but a second win in a Champions League final would apparently put Mosimane out of reach for the Bafana, too, even if there was a change of leadership in Safa.
* “Mosimania” could become a word in the dictionary
Since his arrival, there has been quite a stir around Mosimane in Cairo.
It was already well known because the Sundowns beat Al Ahly archrival Zamalek in the 2016 Champions League final, and the Brazilians also inflicted a 5-0 record beating on Ahly last year.
Mosimane has led Ahly to clinch an Egyptian Premier League title, which had been sealed by Weiler, in style with four wins and a draw in the Devils’ last five games, as well as beating Wydad in the League semi-finals. of Champions.
Things are sure to get tougher in a full season for the manager in 2020-21, but while the honeymoon is still in, “Mosimania” is a term that seems to become more common if Ahly beats Zamalek on Saturday night. .
* (Some of) Egypt’s national team fans might forgive South Africa and Baxter
It seems ironic that a South African coach will take the bench for Egypt’s biggest club against its second-biggest in a Champions League final at the 80,000-seat venue where Baxter’s Bafana made the impact of the tournament in 2019. Africa Cup Nations defeating the hosts 1-0 in the second round.
Mosimane can do much to repair international relations between the financial superpowers of North and South Africa, or at least with around half of the Egyptian population, leading Ahly to continental glory.
Zamalek fans would continue to be upset, and even more so, with the coach for having the remarkable record of defeating his team twice in a Champions League final.
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