Miguel Cardoso makes rallying plea to Sundowns supporters
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Cardoso implores Downs fans ahead of MCA clash
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Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has made a rallying plea to the Masandawana faithful ahead of their Group C finale against Rulani Mokwena's MC Alger on Saturday.
The Brazilians will host the Algerian champions in a must-win match at Loftus Versfeld Stadium, as they aim to secure passage to the knockout stages of the CAF Champions League.
Downs sit third with six points from five matches, while Mokwena's side is in second spot with seven points in as many matches.
With the high-stakes encounter looming, Cardoso is optimistic of securing a favourable result, and has called on the club's supporters to come out in numbers to get the team over the line.
“The team is strong, the team is united, the team is brave, the team will face this week with a lot of enthusiasm because we want to do well. We want to open a page ahead in the competition and for that we need to be strong and we need to be prepared,” he said.
"We hope that in the next match we'll have a full stadium with only one thought - to support the team, not support nothing more. I hope that the opponent doesn't guess or knows how we are going to play. I hope it's controlled so that we can make a fair game from our side.
On their frustrating one-all draw with FC Saint-Eloi Lupopo in DR Congo at the weekend, the Portuguese tactician slammed the Congolese team for their theatrics during the match.
“A lot of theatre during the first half especially, but also in the second one together with a few moments of football. A lot of stops, a lot of players falling down here and there - something that we need to understand gives nothing to football in the future,” Cardoso added.
"It's not the way football gets developed in a country and in Africa in general. It's something that really needs to be fought by the referees and today it was not. So every time we had a moment of energy there was someone falling down. But we knew we had to fight against that also.
Notably, the last time Sundowns were eliminated in the group stage was back in the 2017/18 campaign, and Mokwena could inflict the same fate on his former employers by avoiding defeat.