Sundowns boss Miguel Cardoso says everyone is responsible for Champions League exit

Mamelodi Sundowns manager Miguel Cardoso says the players and coaching staff must share the blame after the defending champions were eliminated from the CAF Champions League at the first hurdle.

Sundowns were knocked out after a 1-1 aggregate draw with Wiliete, with the Angolan side progressing on the away-goals rule.

Speaking to South African channel SBAC, Cardoso said: “The elimination from the CAF Champions League is a failure for which everyone is responsible – the players and the coaches alike.”

Sundowns dominated the match but were unable to make their control count in front of goal.

“Let me make this clear: we controlled the match completely, but we failed to score the goals we needed,” Cardoso added.

“If you count the chances we created in both halves, you will see that we could have performed better to secure the result. But when you lack the decisive touch in front of goal, you leave yourself vulnerable.”

Cardoso said his side also struggled to manage the match emotionally after Wiliete equalised.

“After we conceded the equaliser, we still had 40 minutes to play, but we allowed our emotions to take control of us,” he said.

Tashreeq Matthews scored Sundowns’ goal, while Augustine Mapolulo was on target for Wiliete.

The early exit is Sundowns’ first failure to reach the CAF Champions League group stage since 2015.

The South African club won the competition last season, beating Moroccan side AS FAR 2-1 on aggregate in the final.