OPINION: Cardoso winning battles but losing Sundowns’ identity war

In my view, Mamelodi Sundowns might be winning, but there is something missing about their identity. There’s something about Miguel Cardoso that simply doesn’t sit well with a section of the Sundowns fan base and some pundits. The man just can’t win in the court of public opinion, and every match is scrutinised through a lens of scepticism.

Some Sundowns supporters still not satisfied

The Portuguese coach masterminded a 3-1 victory over Saint-Éloi Lupopo in their opening match of the CAF Champions League group stages, yet some supporters were still questioning the team’s performance and overall direction.

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It left me asking, what more must he do to convince certain fans that he is actually on the right track? Then I remembered what former coach Pitso Mosimane once said about results not being enough to please the Sundowns faithful.

At Sundowns, how you win also matters and it’s from this point that some of the criticism takes root. It resembles the period when Stuart Baxter won the league with Kaizer Chiefs, and yet sections of Amakhosi supporters were still not entirely satisfied with what they regarded as overly direct football.

I wouldn’t say it’s identical under Cardoso at Sundowns, but I do understand where some fans are coming from. Cardoso’s team is more effective than entertaining, and no one can argue that there isn’t much in the way of ‘shoe-shine and piano’ to their play.

If anything, they resemble a North African side more than the flair-driven Sundowns of old. When I spoke to former Sundowns striker Katlego Mashego, he referred to it as the ‘short blanket’ approach, meaning supporters want to win, but they want to win the Sundowns way.

This is why the upcoming clash between Sundowns and MC Alger will once again divide opinion among supporters. Not only is it a meeting with Rulani Mokwena, a man still admired by many fans for the fluid football he delivered, but it will also be another litmus test of Cardoso’s approach. Should Mokwena’s Algerian side do a number on Sundowns, the noise around Cardoso will rise sharply again.

Champions League required

I’ve said before that I don’t believe Sundowns will win the Champions League this season, but as a patriot, I would be delighted to be proven wrong. I fully expect them to progress to the knockout stages, but failure to win Africa’s biggest club competition will inevitably add fuel to the growing discontent among those unconvinced by Cardoso’s methods.

The only way Cardoso will silence the frustration, while playing this pragmatic brand of football, is by winning Sundowns’ second continental title and anything less will count against him. That is why his position feels so precarious because winning is demanded, and winning with style is non-negotiable.

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Under Mokwena, the team played eye-catching football, and even though he failed to deliver the Champions League, supporters still backed him because he stayed true to the club’s identity. For Cardoso, that is the uncomfortable comparison he cannot escape.