The former Mamelodi Sundowns coach has revealed why he lured veteran tactician to Morocco
Rulani Mokwena has explained that the need to have an experienced head was the reason for his decision to bring on board veteran coach Allan Freese to his technical team at Wydad AC.
Mokwena joined Wydad in July following his shock departure from Mamelodi Sundowns and has been assembling his backroom staff with a large number of them being familiar faces from South Africa.
The 37-year-old started by bringing in Sinethemba Badela as assistant coach, performance analyst Sibusiso Makitla, fitness trainer Sibusiso Mahlangu and has now added Freese as technical director.
Mokwena feels having Freese on the technical bench will impart more into the coaches at Wydad, drawing comparisons with Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag, who brought in veteran Steve McLaren as one of his assistants, when he joined the Red Devils in 2022.
Will Freese make Mokwena successful at Wydad?
“Look, I think you see it with many coaches now. I remember Erik Ten Hag at Manchester United, he had someone more senior, someone more experienced than him,” Mokwena told the SA Football Journalist Association (Safja) as quoted by the Sowetan.
“Coach Allan Freese is no stranger to football. I think he has incredible success not only as a football player but also as a coach. I had the privilege and honour to work with him in my early days as a coach at Silver Stars … way back.
“Just the other day we were speaking about our memories of working at Silver Stars and some of the things that we have gone through. And when the opportunity arose, I thought to myself that sometimes when you are a little bit younger, you need some experience around you.
Ex-Sundowns coach has brought in people he trusts
“As I said, coach Allan comes from an incredible pedigree. He is a very experienced coach and he is a great man. He has won a lot of trophies also, so you also need that.
“You need people who know how to win, but also people who work with players that are up and coming. If I look at the project that I need to do, he fits the bill well and he was available too.”
Mokwena and Freese worked together during the formative years of his coaching journey at the now defunct Silver Stars, a stint that shaped the ex-Sundowns trainer’s career.
The Wydad coach was given a free hand to choose his backroom staff by the Moroccan giants and has gone for the people he trusts to help him turn around the fortunes of the club, who finished a disappointing sixth last season.
