Jomo Sono: I knew Pitso Mosimane would be great coach since his playing days

Former Bafana Bafana manager Jomo Sono says he predicted Pitso Mosimane would end up a great manager since his days as a player.

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Pitso Mosimane left Mamelodi Sundowns last October and took over as Al Ahly coach.

During his short stint at the helm of the Egyptian giants to date, Mosimane has already guided Al Ahly to the treble.

More recently, Mosimane oversaw an historic FIFA Club World Cup bronze medal for the club after they beat Copa Libertadores champions Palmeiras in the third-place playoff.

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“When I discovered Pitso Mosimane he was one of the best players that I knew and I knew that he had great ambition. He was a top-class striker,” Sono told OnTime Sports TV.

“We still talk constantly and I told him that when he becomes a manager he would go the distance.

“We need to thank Al Ahly for giving the responsibility of being in charge of the team.

“Mosimane once criticised me for telling the team to play more defensively.

“He was talking to me like a child talking to his father and I said at the time that he would be a great coach,” Sono added.

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‘Bra J’, now 65, brought Pitso Mosimane, now 56, to Jomo Cosmos in 1982 when he was in charge of the team.

Three years later Mosimane joined Mamelodi Sundowns and moved back and forth between the two sides until 1989 when he signed for Orlando Pirates.

From the Buccaneers he moved overseas when he played for Ionikos Nikeas in Greece, Belgium’s FC Rita Berlaar and Qatar side Al-Sadd after which he retired in 1996.

Jomo Sono led the Bafana Bafana to the 1998 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final where they lost to Egypt.

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