Miguel Cardoso plots fresh approach despite MTN8 first leg advantage
23rd August 2025
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Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso says it would be naïve to place too much importance on their away goal from the first leg of the MTN8 semifinal against Orlando Pirates.
The two sides played to a 1-1 draw in Soweto last weekend and meet again in the return fixture at Lucas Moripe Stadium this afternoon, with Sundowns holding a slight advantage thanks to Teboho Mokoena’s strike.
But Cardoso insists his team’s approach will not hinge on that edge.
"Any coach that thinks that managing a draw advantage because you scored away and tries to take the game in that way is making a big mistake. So, it's not even my way of approaching a football game and for sure also not in the nature of our players and our club,” Cardoso said.
“We have a big responsibility and the responsibility is to make the best possible out of this semi-final and to make it we need to be aggressive enough. To have our moments, to create our moments and to score goals.
“I believe that we have to score goals if we want to go through because we also play against a team that can score at any moment by the quality of the players that will for sure line up on the other side. So, these kinds of matches are matches that tactically must be well prepared."
The Portuguese mentor indicated they would “impose” themselves on Pirates, a side he believes has all the potential to eliminate them from the competition.
"We know what qualities that our opponent has, we need to reduce them. I think in the first match we had in some moments some difficulties, we need to correct those details, reminding that details are very important thing in football,” the coach added.
“So, when you think about details it doesn't mean that those things are not massive because they are massive. They can make you suffer goals and correcting those mistakes I don't think Orlando Pirates will play a different way.
“They will be loyal to themselves, as we see since the new coach arrived, it's very clear. Even on Wednesday night we saw again in the match against Stellenbosch that the way they play is very clear and easy to characterise, it doesn't mean that it's easy to control but we need to do it.
“We need to take the ball and create our moments and manage the game as much as possible the way we like and we know and we should do, trying to impose as much as possible."
