Miguel Cardoso plays down alleged Sundowns-Wiliete technical staff clash ahead of second leg

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has moved to ease tensions ahead of Friday’s CAF Champions League return fixture against Wiliete SC, insisting that the alleged confrontation between members of the two technical teams has been given unnecessary attention.

Reports emerged following Sunday’s goalless first-leg encounter in Angola, claiming that Sundowns assistant coach Steve Komphela and Wiliete mentor Beto Bianchi were involved in a physical altercation. However, the exact circumstances surrounding the alleged incident have not been officially established.

Speaking during Mamelodi Sundowns’ open media day at Chloorkop on Wednesday, Cardoso played down the reports, stressing that the South African champions were treated with respect throughout their stay in Angola.

The Portuguese tactician maintained that the relationship between the two clubs remained positive despite the reported incident, which he attributed to the emotions that often accompany competitive football.

“There are two things that I can say. Small things can become big things when you give it too much attention. I think that [incident] had too much attention to what really happened. The second one is that we were very well received and we were taken care of very well, even to the last moment we took our flight back home,” Cardoso said.

He further emphasised that both clubs had established a good relationship and urged everyone involved to move on from the controversy and focus on the football.

“The two teams had a good relationship, and we are still establishing a good relationship in terms of how people connect. So football has to do with a lot of emotions; there were a lot of emotions. Sometimes those emotions break out, and we have already overcome that, and it will definitely be a beautiful match on Friday between people who respect each other,” he added.

Cardoso also assured Wiliete that they would receive a warm welcome in Pretoria, revealing that he had already held cordial conversations with Bianchi following the first-leg encounter.

“We will welcome the people from Wiliete very well. I spoke to the coach [of Wiliete, Bianchi] before the press conference and after the match, and we had an absolutely normal talk, and we hope that this time there won’t be extra energy from both sides rather than on the pitch because that’s where the teams have to fight each other,” he said.

The Sundowns boss insisted that the focus should remain on the decisive encounter rather than the reports surrounding the alleged confrontation.

“Let’s not make noise over things that are very small. There are so many things that happen in football that we don’t speak about,” he concluded.

The two sides will meet again in Pretoria on Friday, October 23, with a place in the CAF Champions League group stage at stake after their first-leg encounter ended goalless in Angola.

Sundowns will have home advantage as they seek to finish the job against the Angolan outfit and continue their pursuit of continental success.

The South African giants enter the decisive fixture as the reigning African champions after defeating Morocco’s AS FAR 2-1 on aggregate in May to win the 2025/26 CAF Champions League title for the second time in the club’s history.

With qualification on the line, Cardoso will be hoping his players channel their emotions into a strong performance on the pitch as Sundowns look to overcome Wiliete and advance to the group stage.