Head coach of Wydad Casablanca Rulani Mokwena has criticized his players following their elimination from the Moroccan Throne Cup.
Wydad suffered a shock early exit from the Cup competition after a 1-0 defeat to Maghreb Tetouan. The result dashed South African coach Rolani Mokoena’s hopes of winning a trophy in his first season in the Moroccan league after falling in the league title race earlier.
Mokoena was furious with the performance of his players during the decisive match, describing the team’s mentality as the main reason for the early exit.
‘Either we have to change the mentality of the players, change the players themselves, or change the coach.’ He pointed out that the team only showed the desire to win after conceding the goal, which he considered a late and unacceptable behaviour”
“I warned the players in the first half that the game would go to whoever takes it, and unfortunately we were the weaker side,’ he said. The coach, who is going through his worst period with Wydad, added: “It’s not a performance issue, it’s a mindset issue: “It’s not a performance issue, it’s a mindset issue and if we don’t address this, we will repeat the same mistakes.”
Despite the inclusion of on-loan Sundowns stars Thembinkosi Lorch and Cassius Mailola, the team’s performance has fallen short of expectations, leaving the club’s management with a tough decision to make in the coming period.
