Miguel Cardoso rues injuries as Sundowns suffer CAF Super Cup defeat

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso said losing two important players to injury contributed to an “uncharacteristic” 3-1 defeat by USM Alger in the CAF Super Cup.

Sundowns were beaten by the Algerian side at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday afternoon after Nuno Santos was forced out during the warm-up and striker Brayan Leon was carried off in the 14th minute.

Cardoso said the circumstances surrounding the match had made it particularly difficult for his side.

“It was a very uncharacteristic match from the beginning,” he told SABC Sport. “If I speak about everything that happened before the game, you would never believe it.

“Of course, we made mistakes – a lot of them, especially for the goals we conceded.”

The coach said Sundowns had initially managed to withstand the pressure, but found the conditions increasingly difficult after the interval.

“I think we were strong while we tried to resist, but then we could not,” he said. “In the second half, with the pitch, it was very difficult to play and overcome all the difficulties.”

Cardoso was particularly frustrated by the loss of Leon so early in the contest, having already been required to alter his starting line-up before kick-off.

“It is not easy to arrive, prepare for the match, lose a key player during the warm-up and then, after 10 minutes, lose a striker and have to make another substitution,” he said.

Sundowns conceded after making an error, then attempted to find an equaliser before allowing USM Alger to score again soon afterwards.

“You concede a goal from a mistake, you still go for the equaliser and then immediately suffer a second goal,” Cardoso said. “There was a lot of aggression. I think we had 45 minutes to turn it around, but when I came out and saw the pitch, I understood that Sundowns could not use the football they are used to playing.”

The state of the surface also reminded Cardoso of a previous visit to Loftus Versfeld, when he said his team had been forced to focus on resisting rather than playing their usual style.

“It made me remember when I was lucky enough to play here against Sundowns,” he said. “We just resisted because the pitch was exactly like this.

“This is not the condition in which we play. It is not how we want to play or how we can play. I think the boys tried, but the mistakes we made at moments when we should not have made them were impossible to overcome.”

Cardoso apologised to Sundowns’ supporters, chairman and board after what he described as a painful afternoon.

“It was very uncharacteristic,” he added. “I am very sorry for our fans who were here. We wanted to give them joy, and also our chairman and board. I feel a lot of pain today because of that. It was a very difficult and tough one.”