Cardoso Warns Sundowns Ahead Of Al Hilal Return Leg After Frustrating Draw
Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has warned his side against leaving things to the last minute, insisting they must travel to Rwanda next Friday needing to win the return match against Al Hilal.
Sundowns were held to a frustrating 2–2 draw by the Sudanese side at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Friday, with Al Hilal grabbing a late equaliser through Abdelrazig Omer in the 71st minute.
Omer, who scored a brace, stunned Sundowns with an early opener in the 15th minute, firing a thunderous close-range strike to give the visitors a shock lead.
Arthur Sales restored parity for Sundowns in the 22nd minute, finishing off a superb pass from Nuno Santos. The hosts then went ahead in the 64th minute when Bafana Bafana midfielder Teboho Mokoena scored a stunning goal from a short corner.
However, Sundowns were unable to protect their lead, and matters were compounded when Al Hilal were reduced to 10 men after Emmanuel Flomo was sent off with five minutes remaining. Despite their numerical advantage, Sundowns could not find a winning goal.
Despite dropping points at home, Sundowns remain top of Group C with five points from three matches, level with Al Hilal.
Rulani Mokwena’s MC Alger, who have one point, have an opportunity to close the gap to just one point if they defeat TP Mazembe’s compatriots FC Lupopo of the DR Congo at Stade de la Victoire in Lubumbashi on Sunday.
Speaking after the draw, Cardoso reiterated his team’s intent to win every match.
“As always, we approach every game to win,” said Cardoso.
“We will go to Rwanda [to face Al Hilal on 30 January] with the right attitude to win the game. It has absolutely nothing to do with the other match being played. Our focus will be entirely on our game against Al Hilal.
“We should not leave everything to the last matches. Obviously, we didn’t get the points we should have today, and I believe we deserved to win based on the way the game was played. We now have to go and fight in Rwanda, no doubt.”
However, at the final whistle, sections of the Sundowns faithful called for the return of Pitso Mosimane, the club’s most successful coach, who has been linked with a potential comeback amid speculation over Cardoso’s future.
With expectations high at Chloorkop, it is clear that if performances and results do not improve under the Portuguese coach, Sundowns may be forced to take decisive action.
