CAFCL: Cardoso defends Lucas Suarez ahead of Sundowns versus Al Ahly clash

Photo Credit – Mamelodi Sundowns Media.

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has come out to defend defender Lucas Suarez ahead of their crunch first leg semi-final CAF Champions League fixture against Al Ahly of Egypt at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Saturday.

The Argentine star was at fault for the first goal as the Brazilians went on to lose 2-1 against Kaizer Chiefs and exit the Nedbank Cup tournament. Ahead of the Al Ahly clash, Cardoso was asked whether he would give Suarez a chance to play against the African champions.

“Before any player makes a mistake, I may make many mistakes myself,” he responded as quoted by FARPost. “The first mistake I make comes from my job of choosing players for the task. I have to select 11. So when I choose 11, there are over 20 who already think that I’ve made a mistake, along with many others who feel the same way.

“Of course, there are goals that come from something fantastic unrelated to an opponent’s mistake, but most of them result from small things that didn’t happen as they should have. I don’t dwell on the past regarding that. We work to improve. Everybody strives to get better.”

He continued: “We believe that the players we have in the group are the ones who can handle the difficulties that each match presents, along with the challenges that arise from there. But obviously, there’s always an emotional state. We need to elevate the players so that they can perform properly.

“As you understood, no matter what happened in the last match, there was still time to play, and we could not address the issue. And it’s not because of that mistake that we lost, but due to another error. I don’t want to discuss the last game because we should also focus on the future.”