CAFCL: Cardoso "conscious" about what's ahead after slim first leg victory over Espérance

Photo Credit - Mamelodi Sundowns Media.

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso was not a satisfied man despite his side securing a 1-0 first leg quarter-final win against Esperance in their CAF Champions League fixture at at Loftus Versfeld on Tuesday.

Namibia international Peter Shalulile netted the only goal of the game 10 minutes into the second half, edging closer to becoming the all-time top scorer in the Premier Soccer League.

His goal was decisive in a match where the Betway Premiership champions controlled possession, dictated play, and moved the ball to keep their Tunisian opponents at bay.

However, speaking after the game, Cardoso admitted that he was still worried of the advantage they will be carrying to Tunis, when the two sides face off again in a return leg contest at the Stade Olympique Hammadi Agrebi on 8 April.

“I’m not really excited but conscious about what we have ahead and what we got,” explained Cardoso to SABC Sports. “But we also need to understand the game we were playing and what team we were playing. The tie is at half-time, we have hard work ahead of us, but its better go with a 1-0 rather than a 1-1 or a 0-0.

I think the first half we were not very clever on the way we had to play. Because the things that we knew we had to put on the pitch we didn’t. So, we ran away from the plan that we had defined that’s important to do. When you do it it’s obvious, you’ll not play the game you want to play.

Anyway, we controlled the first half, then I think in the second half we did in the first 20 minutes what we needed to do. Out of that we got the goal, and at that moment I felt we played what we wanted to play. Then again we went on not the best emotions and could have continued with the same style that we wanted to have in order to go for the second goal.”

Sundowns will be seeking to go all the way and win the elusive trophy. Last season they failed to go past the semi-final stage.