Sundowns to play for win against Esperance

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach, Miguel Cardoso, is aware that the 1-0 lead they take into their CAF Champions League second leg semi-final against Esperance is a precarious one.

He also emphasised the importance of his team playing for the win in Saturday’s second leg in Pretoria.

Sundowns are on the verge of reaching a fourth Champions League final in their history, however, Esperance are expected to give the Brazilians a stern test.

“1-0 is just 1-0. I think both teams have capacity to score goals in all matches they play. It’s very rare to see a result from Esperance with zero. It’s very rare to see a result from Sundowns with zero,” said Cardoso.

“What you need to understand is that obviously it’s possible to do it and we did it in the previous match, but there is a lot of work to do if you want to keep your goal. To make a clean sheet is a lot of work and a lot of strictness and a lot of concentration and a lot of running and a lot of capacity to have the ball mostly.”

Sundowns will be boosted by their supporters, with the venue confirmed as sold out for the highly anticipated encounter.

“Both teams will try not to suffer and both teams will try to make the details of the game. I obviously expect a very tactical match played by wonderful players from both sides,” added Cardoso.

Preparations for the #TotalEnergiesCAFCL semi-finals are done and dusted 💪#Sundowns #AreyengMasandawana pic.twitter.com/9iwoG5wUUH

— Mamelodi Sundowns FC (@Masandawana) April 17, 2026

Written by: Ntsako Mukhari