New Polokwane City coach Bayano Moloto has set his sights on a top-three finish, CAF Confederation Cup qualification and domestic cup success in his first season back in charge of Rise and Shine.
Moloto began his second spell with the club with a 2-1 away victory against Richards Bay in the Betway Premiership at the weekend. He has now outlined an ambitious set of targets after replacing Phuti Mohafe, who had led Polokwane City to a top-eight finish before leaving the club.
The coach wants his side to remain in contention for silverware while also securing a place among the league’s leading teams.
“The plan is to finish in the top four and go to one of the semifinals and lift one of the cups and try to get position three. Maybe we can also qualify for the CAF Confederation Cup. That’s the aim we want to achieve at the end of the day,” Moloto said.
Moloto left Polokwane City in 2021, but said his return was not entirely unexpected. He explained that he had remained in contact with chairman Johnny Mogaladi after his departure, including during his time working at Real Academicals Soccer Academy in Ghana.
“I knew because when I left the team in 2021, I asked the blessing from the chairman [Johnny Mogaladi], and every time we met, even when I was working in Ghana [Real Academicals Soccer Academy], we kept on communicating, and he said one day I will come back and take over the team,” he said.
“But I think it came early. We always plan but God decides, so I can say it was a blessing in disguise for me also to be with the family because I have been away from my family for a long time.”
Polokwane City’s immediate attention is now on the MTN8 quarter-final, where they will face Mamelodi Sundowns at Lucas Moripe Stadium at 18:00.
Although Moloto has returned to the club, he does not intend to make major changes to the way the team plays. He said preparations for the knockout match had progressed well and praised the players for adapting to the ideas already introduced.
“The preparations have been going well and I’m happy with the progress of the players and what we have implemented in terms of style of play, even though I’m not going to change much. But there is a lot of improvement.”
The future of defender Thabang Matuludi at Polokwane City remains uncertain, but Moloto said the player continued to form part of his plans. He also warned Matuludi against rushing into a move to a bigger club if it could affect his chances of representing Bafana Bafana.
“It doesn’t make sense to go to a bigger team, and at the end of the day you lose your spot in the Bafana Bafana squad, because we want him to be one of the regulars in the national team.”
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