Rulani Mokwena and Wydad Athletic Club have come to a mutual decision to part ways at the end of the season after a string of disappointing results.
The news were confirmed by Mokwena’s agent Steve Kapeluschnick to Hollywoodbets Sports Blog on Wednesday.
“I’ve flown to Morocco to meet with the club and president Hicham Ait Menna regarding the future of Rulani and his technical team,” Kapeluschnick said as quoted by Hollywoodbets.
“It was agreed that no matter the outcome of the remaining matches, the two parties have made a commitment that Rulani will be the coach until the end of the season, thereafter he will respectfully part ways with the club.”
The 38-year-old was named head coach of the Moroccan giants in July 2024 after his abrupt exit from Mamelodi Sundowns, under a contract that would keep him at the club until June 2027.
He took over following an underwhelming 2023/24 season, during which Wydad finished sixth in the Botola Pro 1 standings and failed to qualify for continental competitions.
Mokwena signed over 20 players but still struggled to reach the expectations of the club’s management. Currently third on the log with 43 points, having won 11 games, played 10 draws and suffered 4 losses.
“The president insisted that he continued to believe in Rulani and Rulani has complete faith in the president – we all decided to part ways at the end of the season,” Kapeluscnick added.
“He’s been completely committed to the club and the project where he has worked tirelessly to transform a side that was non-existent.
“They made a total of around 29 signings which is astonishing and from nothing, worked obsessively to build a team that was under incredible pressure to win – and win immediately.
“I am so proud of the entire technical team who worked around the clock to build and create this team, and they’re sitting in third position despite some questionable refereeing decisions and they are desperate to do as well as they can for the remainder of the season.
“He arrived in Morocco on the 11th of June, and in those ten months has returned to South Africa I think only once to bury his grandmother.
“While he was at home and in mourning, he was sitting on conference calls trying to prepare the team for their next fixture – unbelievable.
“He didn’t have time to mourn his grandmother, who was the matriarch of the family. He was so committed to his team that all he wanted to do was to be there for his players.
“Rulani and his technical team have worked 24/7 trying to return Wydad to the top of Moroccan football.
“He loves the players,” Kapeluschnick concluded.
Mokwena is gearing up for the Casablanca derby against local rivals Raja on Saturday, April 12, and emphasized at the beginning of his term that his goal is to restore the club’s competitiveness in the CAF Champions League.