Rulani Mokwena on first defeat, potential CAF sanction | OneFootball

Interview

Mokwena speaks on maiden loss, possible CAF punishment

Photo: Rulani Mokwena

MC Alger head coach Rulani Mokwena has reacted to his first defeat in charge of the Algerian giants on Saturday and a potential sanction from CAF.

MCA lost 2-1 against Sudanese heavyweights Al-Hilal Omdurman in their CAF Champions League group stage opener, which has them currently sitting at the bottom of the standings.

Mokwena's men were on a 12-game unbeaten run across all competitions and the South African mentor concedes no team is immune to defeat, lamenting lapse of concentration in defense.

“Every team loses in the world, we take our first defeat of the season with a lot of humility and the lessons that come out of the result and now five more games to play for in the group and inshallah we get better,” said Mokwena.

"I thought we were a little bit stable [defensively], the only problem came from the second phase but either than that I thought we did very well with the set pieces and as I said, I think for most parts of the game we defended very well in open play and in dead ball situations.

"I thought we did well except for the two moments where we lapsed concentration and we got punished and this is Champions League - you lose concentration, you make mistakes, you will be punished, that's the level of this competition.

Mokwena was livid at full-time as he clashed with a member of Hilal's technical team, which could result to a CAF sanction, but the 38-year-old tactician says that's not his main concern at this stage.

“Am I not afraid to get sanctioned? This is not my concern. My concern is the performance of my team on the pitch during the 90 minutes. We were not good enough today [Saturday] in most moments of the game and that's my concern - the other stuff is not for me,” he added.