If you follow DJ Naves on any of his social media platforms, then you might want to mute him because he is going to make sure that everybody knows that Mamelodi Sundowns are DStv Premiership champions. An ardent Sundowns supporter, Naves spoke to Soccer Laduma about club's latest success in the Premiership, as the Tshwane giants were confirmed champions of the local game with an impressive seven matches to spare.
How do you feel now that Mamelodi Sundowns has won the DStv Premiership title with seven matches to spare?
It feels amazing. I think think we are very fortunate to live through this era. This sort of dominance in the local game is unheard of. It's an amazing feeling and it now just gives us a nice gap where we can focus on the CAF Champions League and the Nedbank Cup because we need those two trophies as well.
Which title winning season was your favourite, and why?
Phew, I think it has to be the Teko Modise one (2013/14). It was his first title winning and it was amazing for me, just because of all the things that were said about him. For him to prevail and come out on the other side with trophies left everybody gob-smacked. I was watching an interview the other day and they were still talking trash about him, but he retired a club legend and he is back home.
If you were to pick a player of the season at Sundowns, who would it be?
Yoh! This season has been tough, but I can't take away the influence of a player like 'Mshishi' (Themba Zwane). I think he always stands out. Player of the season? It will definitely have to be 'Mshishi' for me'.
Who is your all-time favourite Sundowns player?
It would have to be Sam 'Ewiee' Kambule. I just thought he was amazing. I remember back in the day, I got a glimpse of him. A game where he really caught my eye was in a game against Orlando Pirates at FNB Stadium. He got the ball from the back and ran down the channel, crossed it and we managed to score. There are just so many memories. Growing up, you always wanted to emulate someone you liked and I thought Sam Kambule was amazing.
Who is your favourite player in the current Sundowns squad?
I like Allende. I am a big 'Mshishi' fan, but Allende is something else. I just think he has brought in new dimensions to the way we play. I think he is one of those players who are working so hard, but his work is not getting recognised, especially by whoever picks the man of the match awards. I don't know who picks the man of the match awards needs to look at the stats and numbers and see what Allende allows us to do. Amazing talent right there.
Who is your favourite Sundowns coach of all time?
I think it would be having coach Pitso Mosimane and Rulani Mokwena on the bench at the same time. That was an amazing era. It's the seeds that were planted for the fruits we are not bearing.
Where did your love for Sundowns come from?
Growing up, I did not want to go with the grain or the influence from my mother. So, back in the day, I remember looking at a poster and I checked with Daniel 'Mambush' Mudau and he said it was the first year from when he came back from a loan spell. So it must have been around 1993/94, so that's like 30 years ago. Damn!
How are you going to celebrate this season's title success?
Like every year, I am going to taunt all the other supporters of the clubs in the league. I will make sure that they all know that we are champions and everybody will call me 'champ' for another four years to come and we will definitely be doing a trophy parade with the team. We are definitely going to show up. We just need to finish these other two things (Champions League and Nedbank Cup) and then we will get into the celebrations.
What will it take for Sundowns to win the Champions League this season?
We've just got to win our games. We need to make sure that we win at home and put the pressure when we get to the away leg. I think that's all that it is. We just need to focus, put our heads down and really work towards that goal because it's the missing piece in the jigsaw. That's one (competition) we need to win back-to-back. Sundowns is its biggest threat because when we don't show up, it really shows. We are our biggest threat. We need to get ourselves right so that we can make sure that we clinch the title.
