Mamelodi Sundowns: Monnapule Saleng backed for return despite fierce competition

Monnapule Saleng has been given a route back into the Mamelodi Sundowns first team, although head coach Miguel Cardoso says the winger will have to compete strongly for an opportunity.

Saleng was excluded from first-team training at Chloorkop earlier this season but has since rejoined the squad. The former Orlando Pirates player trained with Sundowns and travelled with them to Durban for the MTN8 final.

He was not included in the matchday squad for the final against Orlando Pirates, but joined the rest of the team during their celebrations. Cardoso was seen embracing Saleng and encouraging him to lift the trophy.

Saleng’s future at the club had been placed in doubt after Cardoso revealed that the player failed to report for travel to Morocco for Sundowns’ CAF Champions League second-leg final against AS FAR.

However, the relationship between the player and the club appears to be improving, with Cardoso saying Saleng’s reintegration followed discussions involving Sundowns’ sporting director, players, captains and chairman.

Speaking after Sundowns’ 4-1 victory over Richards Bay at Princess Magogo Stadium, Cardoso said: “In the same way I spoke about Saleng when I last spoke about him… we as a club, me the sporting director, the players, the captains and the chairman, we decided to give ourselves and Saleng an opportunity to move forward in a positive way.

“Saleng trained during a period alone and he trained quite consistently and with respect of the values we need to have inside a professional team. Since he joined the team, he has kept that path. So, happy that he shows consistency in training.”

Saleng faces competition for a place

Cardoso said Saleng remained part of his plans but warned that the number of attacking options available to Sundowns would make his return to competitive action difficult to predict.

“Obviously, his time will appear in a certain moment, I am pretty sure. When it will be? I don’t know. Obviously, you must understand that in this year we have more options in the front than we have in the past,” he said.

“You see Arthur (Sales) is not here, Lebo Mothiba was here but he is not on the bench even.”

“We have Saleng, Tsiki (Katlego Ntsabeleng), so we have other players also that were not here. They have to fight amongst themselves to get a position. I am pretty sure he will appear and he is a player we trust,” he added.

Cardoso said trust was being rebuilt gradually and that both he and Saleng needed to develop confidence in their working relationship before the player could perform at his best.

“We are trying to create a positive relationship so that I can trust him and he can trust me. We can trust each other and on that moment he will be able to perform,” he said.

“You saw me celebrating with him, pushing him to lift the cup of the MTN8, because I totally support him. I think we are a special club on that.”

“Probably in other clubs would not be in this process, but at Mamelodi Sundowns we do want the best for everybody and we take ourselves to the limit in order to get what we want and to give what we want to give,” Cardoso concluded.