Cardoso insists Sundowns will not risk injured Bafana trio in MTN8 final

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso says Teboho Mokoena, Aubrey Modiba and Bathusi Aubaas will only play in Saturday’s 2026 MTN8 final against Orlando Pirates if they are fully fit.

The trio returned to their club after being part of the Bafana Bafana squad for last month’s opening 2027 PAMOJA Africa Cup of Nations qualifying fixtures against Guinea and Eritrea, as well as the international friendly against Egypt.

None of the three players appeared in all of those matches because of injury concerns. They are now being monitored by Mamelodi Sundowns ahead of the final in Durban, where they will face defending champions Orlando Pirates.

Cardoso said the players would undergo another assessment before a decision was made, but stressed that the club would not take unnecessary risks, regardless of the outcome of the evaluation.

“What is important to know is, and I said it from the first day, and I will say it again, the players when they go for the national team, they are national team players,” Cardoso told reporters on Wednesday.

“So, we are completely aligned with that, and happy that the boys were there and performed well. Obviously, it’s important that you understand that we will not risk anything on any player.

“We have many, many, many challenges ahead, and today we’re going to see better how is the condition of the players. Obviously, yesterday they arrived early in the morning, and we assessed them during the day.”

The coach said the medical team had only made its initial assessment after the players arrived back at the club.

“It’s the first contact with the players that the doctors had. Obviously, I had the report yesterday. Let’s wait today see how they react to our first intent of evaluation but mostly put some work with them and from there, we will move,” he added.

Cardoso said the importance of the MTN8 final would not override the club’s wider schedule, which includes another fixture on Tuesday, a qualifying round in the Champions League, league matches and the Super Cup.

“What is 100% sure is that we cannot risk anything on players, considering that this match on the weekend is very important. But on Tuesday there’s another one, there’s a qualifying round for the Champions League, there’s championship matches in meanwhile, and then we have also the Super Cup.

“So, losing one player for five matches in a club like ours is dramatic. So, we will have to see if they are fully recovered or just on those conditions, they will be able to play.”