The arrival of the two players who signed for Mamelodi Sundowns in January, Monnapule Saleng and Khulumani Ndamane, has given its coach, Miguel Cardoso, a nod as he is faced with a situation that forces him to make decisions that leave his other players depressed.
Sundowns returned to the top of the Betway Premiership with a win over Marumo Gallants during the week. The Brazilians have won eight league games in a row.
Due to the recent form of Sundowns, there are fans who believe that there is no team that will stop them from winning the league title for the ninth time in a row.
In these consecutive games, they scored 17 goals and conceded only four.
According to Cardoso, Saleng and Ndamane, who arrived at Sundowns in January, have become pillars which has led him to fail to leave them out of the scheme as they are in a fierce battle for the league title with Orlando Pirates.
Although Saleng, who was loaned by Pirates to Orbit College, has not reached the form he is known for, but in the few games he has played for Sundowns in the league and the Caf Champions League, it is clear to everyone that he will be a big problem once he gets fully into gear.
“Every day we learn something new about Saleng, and we teach him everything he needs to know in the way we want to use him at Sundowns. He arrived injured, so we haven’t had enough time to work with him. At the moment, we are still working on his God-given ability, which seems to be working.”
“I wish he didn’t ask if he was told to do it properly, but he stays on top of you,” said Cardoso.
Ndamane (22), who arrived in January from TS Galaxy where he stood out, even caught the eye of Bafana Bafana coach, Hugo Broos, who included him in the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) squad in Morocco earlier this year.
“Ndamane’s ability is scary when you look at his age and it’s no secret that he came and added to what we had and that’s why I’ve always had a headache.
“It’s hard not to be arrested. This means that there are people who were used to a jersey that hasn’t arrived yet, but their availability has changed,” said Cardoso.
Apart from Saleng and Ndamane, striker Brayan Leon from Colombia came to the fore as he scored four league goals for Sundowns. This made Iqraam Rayners to start on the bench even though he was fighting with those who might take home the goal boot at the end of the season.