Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has been on the receiving end after losing the Caf Champions League final against Pyramids.
The Egyptian outfit claimed a 3-2 aggregate win to secure their maiden continental crown at the expense of Masandawana. Former Brazilians captain Alex Bapela insists the 53-year-old has brought nothing new to the Premier Soccer League champions despite his vast experience from coaching many teams on the continent and abroad.
One of the reasons why Cardoso was brought in place of Manqoba Mngqithi was to win the elusive Caf Champions League second star.
Bapela insists the former Esperance coach is using ineffective tactics which, he claims, were evident on Sunday in the second leg of the final at the June 30 Stadium. He has further questioned why the club's captain Themba Zwane was not given a chance despite being one of the most creative players in Mzansi.
Cardoso just got things wrong
“It’s unfortunate because, as a coach, you are judged by what you do. Cardoso came in, and what did he do? He brought nothing new. When he came in, Sundowns were [already] winning the league every season. When you get a coach, you need someone who is going to bring in something different from just winning the league,” Bapela said as quoted by Sowetan.
“We were like a team playing with no purpose. It looks like the line-up is cast in stone. Most players were not consistent. [On Sunday] to even think of putting [Lebo] Mothiba, I don’t know what we were really doing. We ended up with four attackers, but who was going to create for them? You needed Mshishi [Zwane] there.
“Cardoso just got things wrong and bit by bit, he is losing it. We are not convincing like we used to be, for us to be in the final, it took an own goal to be there. It's sad. It is shocking that he didn’t play Zwane. Big games like this need big players with big-match temperament. Are you doubting Mshishi?” he concluded.
Sundowns will now be focusing on the 2025 Fifa Club World Cup that starts on June 14 to July 13 in the United States.
