Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso says his side could have finished off Lamontville Golden Arrows earlier in Tuesday’s Carling Knockout Cup quarterfinal, but he was nevertheless well pleased with the outcome.
The 1-0 home win, courtesy of a 69th-minute goal from Iqraam Rayners, put Sundowns into their second successive cup semifinal this season after they won the MTN8 last month.
“Obviously, we could have made it easier in terms of result. We had chances to score immediately in the first five minutes. I think we had two clear chances to score, but what was interesting to see is that the team didn't deviate from the plan and was focused enough to keep on playing as we wanted.
“It was important to take the ball out wide, left and right, to move Arrows, then trying to find spaces. They are a team that closes the centre of the pitch very well, so it’s quite difficult to penetrate through the middle.
“So we moved players wide so that we could have more width and capacity to penetrate them in those spaces and stretch them so that we could then also find space inside.
“We had to make a few corrections in terms of positional play at halftime, because we needed to control the ball better. We knew that fatigue would obviously penalise the team that is chasing the ball,” Cardoso added.
“Also, we didn't want to get to a moment in the game where we would be stressed trying to find a goal and expose ourselves (at the back) because we knew also there were quick players on the bench of the opponent, and coach Mandla (Ncikazi) is very clever.
“It was important to score, and that first goal gave us a little bit of stability and put a little bit of rush on the opponent.”
COACHABLE PLAYERS
The Sundowns coach felt his instructions had been adhered to, and this pleased him immensely
“I think the team was very, very loyal to the plan, which is very important for the coach.
"Last week, I was speaking about coachable players. I was saying how important it is that they absorb the tips that we give them, the small indications that have come from one match, and sometimes are different, and how absorbing them and putting them into practice on the pitch makes them stronger. I think we were very committed, a very solid performance, and obviously, we’re very happy to be in the semi-finals of this competition,” Cardoso added.