First up is the MTN8 – a cup that neither Modise nor Sundowns has won under the sponsorship of the multi-national mobile telecommunications company and though the veteran midfielder was still on the books of Orlando Pirates when The Bucs won it in 2010 he wasn’t in the match day squad on that night.
Bidvest Wits will be The Brazilians’ opponents on Saturday (17h00) with Mbombela Stadium the venue as the first installment of their attempt to claim two cup finals gets underway.
“The feeling is great because after putting in so much work it is always rewarding to see yourself being in a team that gets to play in a final. We are in an interesting period as players here at Mamelodi Sundowns and we just hope that come Saturday we can deliver the results,” Modise tells snl24.com/kickoff.
Having already won the league title, the Telkom KnockOut and Nedbank Cup over the course of the last 17 months, winning the next two trophies will likely immortalise this group of players.
Modise knows all too well that the MTN8 is just as crucial as the Champions League in terms of creating a legacy.
“We plan accordingly whenever there is a competition that we are playing in and the first thing that the coach said to us was that this is a trophy (MTN8) that we don’t usually do well in. He then told us that all we need to do is make sure we are in the finals and then take it from there. We are now in the final and up against a very good team on Saturday, this is one trophy that is very important for the team. Within the next three weeks we are in a position to make history and get to be the best Mamelodi Sundowns team ever,” he says.
Having remained resolute in dealing with the pressure of contesting two semi-finals just days apart – Modise fully understands how they have to deal with psyching themselves for pressure fixtures like the one on Saturday.
“I think we have a culture within the team where we try to see the importance of the game and by doing so every game that we play we take it very serious. We have developed a winning mentality within the team and that is thanks to the coach and the technical team," says Modise.
"With the different players that we have in the team everybody wants to win and every game that we play is very important for us. It is really great to see where Mamelodi Sundowns is today because four years ago this club was not where it is today. When I joined the club was not where it is today. We have worked hard to be where we are today and we are really happy that people are finally recognising Mamelodi Sundowns for what it is."