Mamelodi Sundowns Sporting Director Flemming Berg has lauded the Premier Soccer League's South American players for their ability to adapt fast depending on situations.
The technical team leader in Masandawana has compared South African players to those in South America, arguing the circumstances in Mzansi are almost the same.
Ricardo Nascimento, Leonardo Castro, Gaston Sirino, and Marcello Allende have delivered for Sundowns. Lucas Ribeiro and Arthur Sales have also shown glimpses of brilliance; the former joined the club in the 2023/24 season while the latter became a member of the club a couple of months ago.
Berg is happy with the attitude shown by the South American players regardless of the surface of the pitch they are playing on in the country.
From perfect FNB pitch to sh*t Polokwane surface!
“I absolutely love South American players, no doubt, I love them, they have so much flair,” Berg told the media.
“It’s also because in South America they are used to one day play on a perfect pitch like the FNB, and the week after they play on a sh*t pitch like the one we played on in Polokwane.
“One day they play at sea level, one day they play in the altitude. One day they play in extreme humidity like in Durban and one day they play where it’s very cold.
“So, there are similarities with a lot of things for South American players compared with South Africa, so they adapt fast.”
Sundowns are in the Carling Knockout final where they will play Magesi after falling short in MTN8. The team is second on the PSL table with 18 points from seven matches as well as the Caf Champions League group stage.
