Mokwena: Pyramids boss wants to test his football ideas across Africa

Rolani Mokwena says he has no regrets about moving between clubs in recent years and wants to continue testing and developing his football ideas in different leagues and cultures.

The South African coach took charge of Pyramids at the start of this season after previous spells with Al-Ittihad of Libya, MC Alger and Wydad AC.

Speaking to the South African sports journalists’ association, in comments reported by Soccer Laduma, Mokwena said he would like to work in a range of environments before eventually taking a break from coaching.

“One of the things I would really like to begin before I take some time off is working in different leagues, with different players and within different cultures,” he said.

“I want to develop my ideas about football and test whether they are right. I also want to find out whether certain things can succeed in different parts of Africa, and perhaps in many other parts of the world.”

Mokwena said the average length of a manager’s stay at a club had become increasingly short.

“Contrary to what many people believe, the time managers spend at football clubs is becoming shorter and shorter,” he added. “I think the average is now eight or nine months, if we take that into account properly.”

He acknowledged that managers who work in stable conditions, with strong foundations and the opportunity to plan for the long term, are fortunate.

“As a coach, you consider yourself lucky if you have environments with a great deal of stability and sound foundations, allowing you to plan over a longer period and focus on the club’s success from a long-term perspective,” Mokwena said.

“But in my case, I feel I still have additional years, from a coaching perspective, in which I can pursue these experiences.”

The Pyramids manager believes moving between clubs can force coaches to reassess their methods and learn from different groups of players.

“There are not many coaches who have enough time to move between clubs, challenge their own ideas, abandon some of them completely and replace them with new ideas that help produce victories,” he said.

“You will not gain that experience or have the opportunity to work with the best talent and players if you remain at one club. I am fortunate to have been able to move between different clubs and work with a variety of players who are among the best in Africa, despite their differing qualities and characteristics.”

Mokwena also stressed that continuity remained important, even though long managerial spells had become less common.

“The essential point in a coaching journey is that managers no longer remain at clubs for long periods, as we currently see with Mikel Arteta and Luis Enrique, or as we saw with Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp,” he said.

“Even so, a manager’s continuity remains a crucial factor in achieving sustainable success over the long term.”

Mokwena has made a perfect start at Pyramids, winning all five of the club’s league matches, both of its CAF Champions League games and its Egypt Capital Cup fixture.

Pyramids lead the league table on their own with 15 points after the opening five rounds. They next face Ceramica Cleopatra in the sixth round of the Egyptian league.