Cardoso refuses to reveal Sundowns plans after Mudau injury blow

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has declined to discuss whether the club will enter the transfer market for a replacement for injured defender Khuliso Mudau, after his side suffered a 1-0 defeat by Golden Arrows in the MTN8 semi-final first leg at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Sunday.

The result added to a difficult week for the Portuguese coach, who saw Mudau ruled out after the Bafana Bafana right-back ruptured his Achilles during Sundowns’ 2-0 victory over Marumo Gallants last week.

The injury is expected to keep Mudau out for at least six months and leaves Sundowns without one of their most experienced options on the right side of defence.

Reports, including one by KickOff, indicate that Sundowns have made an offer to Polokwane City for right-back Thabang Matuludi. However, Orlando Pirates are also believed to be leading the race to sign the player.

Cardoso was asked after Sunday’s defeat whether Sundowns were actively looking to bring in a replacement for Mudau, but he avoided discussing the club’s recruitment plans.

Instead, he stressed the importance of the squad as a whole and said the team’s depth would be severely tested during the demanding weeks ahead.

“About shopping, it’s not here the place to speak about (that) and we have two players who are internationals in that position, obviously Mudau it’s in another platform, it’s you who say that, I don’t need to speak for that but the strength of the team is the collective, not individuals,” Cardoso told reporters at Lucas Moripe Stadium.

“We need to be collectively very strong as a team in order to overcome whatever losses we have. There are other players who will come back in the next matches, obviously it will make us strong.”

Mudau’s absence comes as Sundowns negotiate a congested schedule, with Cardoso also having to manage the workload of a squad that has been involved in domestic and continental competition.

The coach highlighted the extent of the rotation required by pointing out that none of the players selected against Golden Arrows had started the CAF Champions League final last season.

“This line-up today did not have one single player that played in the first eleven in the final of the CAF Champions League, not even one. But also as you may imagine, it has been obviously difficult to be consistent in finding a line-up and also, as you may imagine when you play three days, four days you also need to change players,” Cardoso said.

Sundowns’ defeat leaves them needing to overturn a one-goal deficit in the second leg of their MTN8 semi-final against Golden Arrows.

Cardoso said the players given opportunities must understand the demands of each match and perform well enough to allow him to continue rotating the squad while maintaining competitive standards.

“So what we need is the players we give opportunities to understand the moment and what they are going for and they give the best so we can consistently also from our side make rotation and be able to have answers. That’s what we’re looking for,” the Portuguese coach added.