With so many stars to pick from in his squad, Mamelodi Sundowns coach Manqoba Mngqithi now has the luxury of calling on a player who made the perfect comeback with a goal over the weekend.
Sidelined due to injury over the last few months, a recovered Mothobi Mvala returned to the Sundowns starting line-up against Golden Arrows in the Carling Knockout last 16 on Saturday.
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Not only did he contribute to a clean sheet, but the former Highlands Park man got his name on the scoresheet, with a well taken header from a Thembinkosi Lorch corner kick in the second half.
Sundowns cruised to a 5-0 victory and Mvala was one of the stand out performers, giving Mngqithi a lot more to smile about after the game.
"On Mothobi, I think we've all been waiting for him. He's one of our best defenders, no doubt. He is a very important player for us in the Champions League and it's always important to give him that opportunity to bring himself back and even get himself back into the national team because we believe he's a very good defender, one of the best in the country," Mngqithi said after Sundowns' annihilation of Arrows at Lucas Moripe Stadium.
"For him to have such big contributions even in our offensive play is big. I was excited to see him scoring because I've been fighting him and saying 'you are no longer scoring now'. When he was at Highlands, he was not giving us a chance. He was scoring in almost every game we were playing against them. To see him scoring again and just coming back from an injury, I think it's going to be a big boost for him going forward."
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Mvala's return would no doubt have brought a smile to the face of Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos, who admitted a couple of months ago that he misses the defender's presence at the back. Seeing as one of the warriors in the national team, Mvala could make a return for the remaining 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Uganda and South Sudan before the end of the year.
