Cardoso Takes Swipe At Chiefs’ Approach

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso blasted Kaizer Chiefs’ approach, believing that his side would not have conceded a goal against them, even if the match had continued for another day.

In a tactical and intense Betway Premiership match, Sundowns and Chiefs played to a goalless draw in front of a 75,000-strong crowd at FNB Stadium on Wednesday night.

Sundowns, who came into the game after a recent MTN8 semi-final loss to Orlando Pirates, remain in third place with eight points from four matches, two points behind second-place Chiefs.

“I think the boys understood the message on how to approach such a game,” Cardoso told SuperSport TV after the match.

“A beautiful ambiance, a fantastic match, and also very intense from the very beginning, quite hard to be played.”

Cardoso felt his team performed better in the first half. “We made a much better first half than the second one,” he said. “After the first 15 minutes, we understood where the spaces were to play. We brought the ball into the right spaces and took control of the match.”

The second half was a different story, as the coach believes emotions from previous defeats crept in. “We started not badly in the second half, but as time went by, emotions were not the best ones to be led inside the football pitch. It brought us again to the memories of the last two matches where you concede at the end.”

Despite the disappointment of a draw, Cardoso was pleased with his team’s defensive effort. “I’m happy with the capacity to fight that the boys had,” he said. “It seems that we could stay here until tomorrow that no goal would be scored against us, but obviously it’s just a point we get from this. I think the team understood what to do. Nobody is happy; everybody wants to win every day. But today, I think it’s an important result, and we can take energy from here.”