Diski Challenge duo among Sundowns 40-man Caf CL squad

Having unleashed Cassius Mailula in their 7-0 drubbing of La Passe 7-in the Caf Champions League last October. Mamelodi Sundowns could give two more gems the taste of continental football in the group stages.

The Brazilians have now included Ntando Nkosi and Jerome Karelse as part of their 40-man registered for the continental competition.

The duo have starred for the DStv Diski Challenge squad and have been training with the first team for an extended period after impressing head coach Rulani Mokwena.

Karelse, who made his PSL debut in a league match against Orlando Pirates, is the current Diski Challenge top goal scorer with 11 goals in his name.

He has been a breath of fresh air in the league after recovering from a long-term arm injury he sustained early last season, which saw him spending the entire season on the sidelines.

Nkosi, 18, has been part of the SA junior national teams. However, he has not featured in the league as yet.

Sundowns coach, Mokwena has been speaking highly of Karelse and vowed to throw the youngster in the deep end so they can learn.

“You never know whether they are ready or not. You got to throw them in the deep end, and they try to swim,” Mokwena recently told members of the media.

“I said it previously that is good for Karelse to watch his game because there is more he needs to improve on. There are so many factors of how a player can reach his full potential.”

Mokwena added: “When I look at young players, I try to look at the bigger picture, not exactly where they are but where I think they could be.

“And Jerome is one of the players that I feel has incredible potential to improve because he has some important weapons already like speed, ability to solve in tight areas, and dribbles which are very important weapons.”

The duo is in line to feature on Saturday when Sundowns begin their Caf Champions League group stage with a match against Al-Hilal of Sudan at Loftus Stadium.