Cardoso plans to reduce Sundowns squad size

Following their participation at the FIFA Club World Cup in the USA, Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has revealed plans to trim down the size of the squad ahead of the new season.

They beat Ulsan HD 1-0 in their opener, before suffering a 4-3 defeat to Dortmund, and then exited the tournament at the group stage, following a 0-0 draw with Fluminense.

“We want to reduce the number of players in the team. We want to make a smaller team, a smaller group, but also we want to make it even with more quality,” said Cardoso, as quoted by SABC Sports.

“So, reduce it but with more quality, so that we have more than one player with high quality for each position. We have more than two, but we need to have two that can replace each other 100 per cent. That is what we need to do.”

Asked which positions will be affected, Cardoso explained: “In some positions we need to have two and a half players. Like full backs, we need to have two on each side, plus probably one [extra]. We also know that we will play a lot in three, four days, which will increase the number of injuries that may happen.

“So, we need to be careful of that. But we will not change a lot. Obviously let’s see what will happen with our players because when you play like we have played, there’s a big risk of losing players.”