Cardoso Insists Big Teams Must Not Suffer Consecutive Losses

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has underlined the expectations that come with managing a giant of South African football, insisting that a club of their stature cannot afford to lose two consecutive matches.

Sundowns bounced back in emphatic fashion, thrashing Richards Bay 4-1 in their Betway Premiership clash at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday. The win came just days after a surprise 1-0 defeat to Golden Arrows at King Zwelithini Stadium — their first league loss of the season.

Cardoso: Big Teams Can’t Fall Twice

Cardoso emphasised that losing two consecutive matches is unacceptable for a team like Sundowns. They bounced back in style, dominating the KwaZulu-Natal side in Pretoria to climb to the top of the Betway Premiership table.

“I think after the result we had in the previous match, it was important to bring the best emotions, the best commitment possible, the best concentration, and the best spirit onto the pitch on Saturday,” Cardoso said.

“A big team can fall once but can never fall twice [in a row], and the boys understood the message, understood how to play the game. By the look of the results, it seems easy, but it was a very difficult match to be played under the pitch circumstances. The pitch doesn’t allow for good football, and we are a team that usually plays good football.”

Adaptation and Game Management

The coach noted the challenges posed by the field conditions and praised his players’ adaptation.

“I, myself, always fight for conditions in the matches that we play, to have a big pitch. The pitch was quick but was not flat. But the team understood the context—both emotional and the conditions we were playing under,” he explained.

“They understood the team we were playing against and the game plan we had defined, and the intensity they had to put on the ball from the very first minute.

“They took the game to their comfort zone, and the comfort zone was to score, getting in the lead in the match… It was a quality game in terms of the adaptation to the conditions, the involvement, and the demands that we placed on them.”

Cardoso concluded by highlighting the management of his squad: “Obviously, we made a lot of changes in order to bring players that need game time, to rest players, and to avoid some injuries on players that were overloaded. But I’m happy about the boys, happy about the ones that entered, the attitude, and the spirit that we showed in preparing for this match.”

League Standings Update

Having moved to the top, Sundowns now have 21 points after 10 matches, one point ahead of second-placed Sekhukhune United, who lost 1-0 to Polokwane City.

However, Sundowns have played one game more than Sekhukhune. Critically, they are also four games ahead of eighth-placed Orlando Pirates, who, if they win their four games in hand, would leapfrog Sundowns and climb to the top of the table.