Cardoso adamant Sundowns will respect Sibanye

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso insists they will be taking Sibanye Golden Stars very seriously in their Nedbank Cup round-of-32 clash at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

Kick-off is at 6pm CAT (SA, GMT+2)

Current form:

Bafana ba Style are bidding to win the competition for a seventh time as they look to deny Orlando Pirates a third consecutive title, having lost to them in the 2024 final.

The Brazilians have reached the final three times in the last five years and they've only failed to progress from the opening round twice in the last 17 seasons.

Masandawana have also never lost to lower-league opposition in nine last-32 ties since it was rebranded as the Nedbank Cup in 2008 and they hold the record for the biggest victory after thrashing Powerlines 24-0 in 2012.

The Tshwane giants have only suffered one defeat in eight matches across all competitions since Cardoso took over the reins on December 11, with their most recent encounter a 2-1 win over Magesi in the Betway Premiership on January 22.

Golden Stars are making just their second appearance in the Nedbank Cup, having lost 4-0 to Mbombela United on their debut in 2016.

The ABC Motsepe League outfit find themselves fourth in Free State Stream B after winning seven of their opening 16 games this season.

What was said:

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso

"It's a match that we need to play with great respect like all the games we play, considering our opponent and not thinking about where they come from and what they want from the game.

"If you look at where they come from, you will make mistakes in the way we approach the game. We will approach the game in a very serious way. That's the only way we can win the tricky matches in cups.

"We don't want to be surprised, we want to be very serious and I will be very serious in the way I demand players to face the game.

"You don't prepare players for these kind of matches a day before, you need to prepare an attitude regularly, and that's what we have been doing since we arrived at the club."

Players to watch:

Mamelodi Sundowns - Lucas Ribeiro has continued where he left off last season, registering nine goals and seven assists in 24 appearances across all competitions. The Brazilian's equaliser against Dikwena tsa Meetse on Wednesday took him level with teammate Iqraam Rayners on six goals to share the lead in the race for the Golden Boot.

Peter Shalulile is back among the goals after scoring in successive CAF Champions League games against AS Maniema Union and AS FAR. The Namibian striker holds the record for the most goals in the Nedbank Cup with 14 and will be eager to add to that tally if given the chance against the minnows from Welkom.