Cardoso Explains How Sundowns Managed to Eliminate Al Ahly in CAF Champions League

• Miguel Cardoso reflects on how Mamelodi Sundowns eliminated Al Ahly from the CAF Champions League in the semi-final stage
• The two-legged tie ended 0-0 in South Africa and 1-1 in Cairo, sending the Betway Premiership leaders to the final on the away goals rule
• The result ended the Red Devils' hopes of retaining the Champions League trophy, with the Brazilians advancing to the final after a composed and strategic performance

Mamelodi Sundowns manager Miguel Cardoso has opened up on how the Brazilians ended Al Ahly's CAF Champions League dream after knocking them out of the competition in the semi-final.

The Premier Soccer League giants were held to a goalless draw by the Egyptian side in the first leg in South Africa, but a 1-1 draw in the return leg at the Cairo International Stadium sent Masandawana to the final on the away goals rule.

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The Pretoria-based side were on the verge of being knocked out of the tournament with the Red Devils leading by a lone goal, but a late own goal by Yasser Ibrahim sent the South African club to the final.

Cardoso on how Sundowns knocked out Al Ahly

In an interview with SABC Sport, Cardoso claimed his team eliminated the defending champions due to the trust they have in everything they believe in.

"Trust — complete trust. Trust in the way we've shared this journey, trust in each other’s quality, trust in the match strategy we created, and trust that even after going down 1-0, we could still come back and score," he said.

"Trust that no matter what happened before, today was a chance to write a new chapter. Trust in a club that backs us and gives us everything we need to work hard. Trust in our families back home who love and support us, and trust in our fans in South Africa — we draw strength from that brotherhood."

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Cardoso reflects on match atmosphere and tension

The Portuguese manager also noted that their tactical approach may have frustrated the home fans, who packed the Cairo International Stadium with 75,000 strong, venting their anger at head coach Marcel Koller, who is now seemingly on his way out of the club.

"I wasn’t really surprised by how they played," the former Esperance of Tunisia coach added.

"If you look at their last nine games against Sundowns, they haven’t managed a win. They had to be cautious. It was always going to be a tight game — both teams had to be careful. One goal could have changed everything.

"We knew we only needed one goal, so we had to stay solid defensively and wait for our moment. Yes, we suffered from a mistake, but we kept working.

"In the second half, we made several changes to go on the attack. We sacrificed a bit of creativity for more aggression, but we believed in ourselves. We earned this win — we always believed it was possible."

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Sundowns will face another Egyptian side in the final, Pyramids FC, after they defeated their rivals Orlando Pirates in the second semi-final.

Sundowns struggling to keep R50m Bafana star

Briefly News also reported that Mamelodi Sundowns are finding it hard to keep a Bafana Bafana star valued at close to R50 million, amid interest from Europe.

A club in the French Ligue 1 have reportedly made an enquiry about the South African international and they are willing to match Masandawana's demands in the summer.

Source: Briefly News