Mamelodi Sundowns secured a narrow victory over Stellenbosch FC in a Betway Premiership clash, but coach Miguel Cardoso expressed disappointment with his team’s inability to capitalize on numerous scoring opportunities.
Former Stellies man Iqraam Rayners proved the difference on the night as he scored the only goal of the tie at DHL Stadium, opening up a three point gap between Mamelodi Sundowns and the chasing pack.
Despite the win, Cardoso regretted missed chances, particularly from the attacking duo of Rayners and Ribeiro Costa. During the post match interview with SuperSport, he said, “Everybody understands how difficult is to play here against the way aggressive team in terms of the way they play, always look for the long ball, not trying to build up the game, so quite difficult to press,”.
“I think we managed during the first 30 minutes of the game, we were quite confident and comfortable to press high. It’s very difficult to keep that intensity. We felt a little bit the last 50 minutes of the first half. Anyway, we understood how we had to start again, using also the spaces that we could find in the back of their defense, we created many chances.
I think the story of this game is our second goal that never appeared and should have appeared in the game. We created so much, so much, so much, but then in the end, we join ourselves, we hold on to the game on the result.
“Today, I believe we could have finished it much sooner rather than the finalist the referee,” Cardoso added.
Mamelodi Sundowns will now look ahead to their next Betway Premiership clash on Tuesday, 24 December against AmaZulu FC. Kick off at the iconic Moses Mabhida Stadium is set for 15h30.