Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane has revealed he was a big Kaizer Chiefs fan growing up and doesn’t hate the club – instead he sees them as his rivals and competition.

The Sundowns coach has caused a stir on a few occasions this season with his comments on Chiefs, with many from the outside insisting that Mosimane has a personal vendetta against the Glamour Boys.

Mosimane, though, believes that the friction between himself, Sundowns and anyone associated with Chiefs is simply down to the two teams competing against each other.

‘I grew up supporting Kaizer Chiefs, by the way. People don’t know that. I don’t hate Kaizer Chiefs, but they are my competition. It is nothing personal,’ Mosimane told IOL.

‘I know a lot of people don’t like some of the things I say about them [Chiefs], but we are rivals in the league.

‘I also talked about Orlando Pirates in the same way when we were competing for the league for the past two seasons. Not that I hated them. It is a competition, nothing personal.

‘The reason Mamelodi Sundowns supporters feel that [Ernst] Middendorp doesn’t like them is because he also doesn’t talk nice about us. People must understand that we are competing,’ he added on his relationship with the Chiefs boss.

‘It is not nice when there’s just one team that is winning. We need competition,’ he concluded.

With league currently halted because of the coronavirus the conclusion of the season remains up in the air. However, with Downs currently in second place on the league table – just four points off log leaders Chiefs with a game in hand – the race to the PSL title will be well and truly on if and when the season gets back under way.