Cardoso doubts Sipho Mbule’s Sundowns future amid disciplinary woes

Sekhukhune United defender Daniel Cardoso has weighed in on the Sipho Mbule controversy, sharing his view that Mamelodi Sundowns are unlikely to keep the midfielder.

Mbule’s loan spell at Sekhukhune was cut short due to alleged disciplinary issues. He joined Babina Noko at the start of the 2024/25 Betway Premiership season and initially impressed, showcasing his passing and attacking flair.

The ex-SuperSport United star played in 17 matches across all competitions, scoring two goals and assisting three.

However, Mbule reportedly fell out of favour after allegedly attending training under the influence of alcohol and bringing an unauthorised person into the Sekhukhune camp. Following Sekhukhune’s decision to return the former SA junior international to Sundowns, Cardoso believes his parent club won’t retain him.

The exciting attacking midfielder also had disciplinary issues at Sundowns during coach Rulani Mokwena’s tenure and at his former club SuperSport.

In an interview on the Soccer Beat Podcast, Mbule’s former teammate at Sekhukhune, Cardoso, expressed his sadness regarding Mbule’s situation. “It’s quite sad to see what’s happening with Mbule,” Cardoso stated. “We had a chat so many times, and as you saw again now, another story unfolded, and he’s been let go by us [Sekhukhune United].”

“I’m not sure where he is, but I think he is back at Sundowns. I mean, he should be in the national team [Bafana Bafana], and he’s such a great character. But the disciplinary issues do affect him. At 26 years of age, we all go through that phase, and sometimes it’s too late to realise, which I hope doesn’t happen to him.

“I hope this has woken him up because Sundowns wanted him back when he went through that good stint with us to go to the Club World Cup, and I don’t think that will happen now with all the negativity around him.

“So I do hope that if he ever gets to see this, I do hope that he comes out of what he’s going through and changes his lifestyle because he’s another player who should be playing in Europe, he has all the talent to play anywhere in the world. Sipho, I hope that you turn your career around, brother.”

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