Cardoso Dismisses Sacking Rumours At Sundowns
Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has dismissed speculation about his future at the club, insisting he is not going anywhere despite ongoing reports suggesting he could be sacked.
Cardoso, who joined Sundowns in December 2024, has been widely linked with a possible exit, with reports claiming the club could consider reuniting with former head coach Pitso Mosimane.
Mosimane is regarded as the most successful coach in Sundowns’ history, having established the club as one of the dominant forces on the African continent. He departed in September 2020 after winning five league titles and delivering the club’s greatest achievement — the CAF Champions League crown in 2016.
Since Mosimane’s departure, Sundowns have yet to win another Champions League title, coming closest last season when they lost to Pyramids in the final under Cardoso.
“Regarding my future, don’t worry about my future because my future doesn’t depend on football,” Cardoso said after Sundowns’ victory over Orbit College, which saw them move to the top of the Betway Premiership standings on Monday.
“It is my professional life that depends on football, and that is completely different. My future depends on many other things. I am the coach of a big team and I will be criticised all the time.
“The real question is how much importance I give to that criticism. Believe me, I don’t give it too much importance. I love being here and I will remain here until the day the club decides otherwise.
“When that day comes, I will leave as a normal man, ready for something different. Until then, I am fully committed and motivated. I am already too old to worry about things that are just noise.”
Since his arrival in December 2024, Cardoso has delivered one trophy — the Betway Premiership title last season.
Reflecting on the modern football environment, Cardoso also criticised the influence of social media on public perception.
“When I was a kid in Portugal, I used to go to the café down the road. At that time, there was no media, no phones, no social networks — nothing like today,” he added.
“All football discussions happened in the café. People read the newspapers, analysed the weekend’s matches and talked about the week ahead. That’s how football discussions were done.
“Nowadays, people discuss the future on their phones and talk about things they have absolutely no idea about. This creates echoes of things that don’t even exist. People discuss what they would like to happen, not what they actually know.
“Having a phone in your hand, creating a blog and gaining followers gives a platform to people who, unfortunately, don’t know what they are talking about.
“Sundowns is a club that is led from the inside, not the outside. There is strong leadership, a strong sporting direction, a strong coach and a very strong dressing room. People from outside cannot hurt us — the doors at Chloorkop are strong and those things do not enter.
“We are united and we know what we have to do. We are working hard to please our fans, and we need our supporters not to let themselves be poisoned by outside noise. They should not echo things that don’t exist and should continue to support us.”
