Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has explained why right-back Khuliso Mudau played in central defence in the final 20 minutes of their loss to Orlando Pirates on Sunday.
Sundowns suffered a 2-1 defeat away to Pirates in the PSL with Relebohile Mofokeng giving Jose Riveiro’s team a 2-0 lead with two goals in the opening five minutes although Mudau pulled one back later in the second half.
Mudau had started at right-back but in the 69th minute, he was moved to central defence when Lucas Suarez was withdrawn with Thapelo Morena coming in at right full-back.
Cardoso wanted some ‘quick legs & freshness’
Cardoso says he needed to freshen things up and also have some quick legs at centre-back to contain the threat of Pirates in the final minutes of the game.
“The thinking was that coach [Jose] Riveiro was making substitutions to have a freshness to deal with these quick attacks,” Cardoso explained as quoted by FARPost.
“[We needed a] quick player at the back that also can play with quality. We needed two things: a player that could play with quality. So, build-up with quality and also a player with speed.
“And with one substitution, we could get both things. I also wanted more freshness on the flank.”
How does the title race look like now?
However, the Portuguese tactician admitted it was not a good decision as Morena did not execute what he had hoped to achieve as he was “not very quick on changing from one side to the other side.”
Sundowns had won 12 of their 14 league games prior to Sunday’s encounter, including a 4-1 victory over Pirates in February, but found the going tough when the Buccaneers’ quick start left them chasing the game.
Cardoso’s men still enjoy a 15-point lead over Pirates but the Buccaneers have four matches in hand which if they win, the gap can be reduced to three points, to set up an exciting end to the season.
