Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso is encouraging his players to give Angola’s Wiliete SC respect and to approach their CAF Champions League second preliminary round return match with caution and aggression on Friday night.
The match will take place at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium and kick-off is at 8:00pm.
The two sides drew 0-0 in Angola in a tension-filled encounter tha2t was marred by touchline confrontations and heated exchanges on Sunday. Going into tonight’s match, the South Africans are aware that away goals by the Angolans can put them in a precarious condition.
The winners will advance to the group stage of the Champions League, Africa’s most prestigious club competition, and it will be very embarrassing for Sundowns, who are the defending champions after they won their second CAF star last season, to bow out in these early, preliminary stages of the competition.
“We’ve been playing final after final since the season started, and that’s exactly the sense that we have, and it’s the reality,” Cardoso told the media at the cub’s headquarters.
“It’s a competition that is settled in stages, and there’s always a point on the different stages where it becomes a final. It’s the story of the teams that fight to win everything and want to be at the highest stages,” he added.
READ: WATCH | Downs’ Miguel Cardoso breaks silence about Komphela and Wiliete coach’s fight
Both teams have no advantage after not scoring in the first leg in Angola and they will now have to fight in Pretoria to book their ticket to the next round or face an early exit.
Cardoso explained further: “We know if we win, we go through. We know that if we draw 0-0, we go for penalties. We know that if we draw with goals, we are out. But as I said, finals are to be won, and we need to play at the best level we can so that we achieve a result that allows us to go to the next stage of the competition.”
“I see this in that way, two teams that want to move forward and a result away that doesn’t speak for itself. There’s no changing of the point, and basically, we’re just playing this one,” he said.
- Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso urged his players to respect Wiliete SC and approach their CAF Champions League second preliminary round return match with caution and aggression.
- The match is set to take place at Loftus Versfeld Stadium with an 8:00pm kick-off.
- The first leg in Angola ended in a 0-0 draw, with both teams having no advantage and away goals posing a potential risk.
- The winner of the tie will advance to the group stage of the CAF Champions League, with Sundowns aiming to avoid an early exit as defending champions.
- Cardoso emphasized the importance of winning and stated that a 0-0 draw would lead to penalties, while a scoring draw would eliminate Sundowns.
