Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso says clash against Pirates not a title decider

We want to be in last part of the season 'able to compete in all competitions’

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has again rejected the widely held notion that their crunch encounter against Orlando Pirates at FNB Stadium could be a title decider. 

The Brazilians visit the Buccaneers in their Betway Premiership clash on Sunday where a win for Sundowns will see them increase their lead at the top to 21 points - but with Pirates having four games in hand. 

It seems a strong position for Sundowns but things may change in the coming weeks if they drop points and Pirates win their games in hand. 

Then there is the unsolved Royal AM issue that could come into play to seriously complicate matters if the embattled club is ultimately kicked out of the league, which could affect the points scenario in various ways. 

“How I see the championship: from the very first moment I arrived here I said teams can lose points in any game,” Cardoso said, adding he won’t change his team's approach for this match. 

“You can lose points at home or away against any opponent. Whatever happens in this match, I will have the same approach I had before.” 

Cardoso said the most important goal for him is to win the three points. 

 “I will approach the game with huge responsibility because there is always three points in question. If people can’t think about the next match, then you can be in trouble.  

“I have to be serious with the approach we take in the PSL, which is challenging. We have to keep this mentality because with this schedule you have to be in the right frame of mind to approach every match. 

“It has also been challenging to understand which players are in the best condition to play and which ones we cannot line up so that they can rest and don’t get injured. 

“I think we are doing well in terms of player management. The focus after this match will be on the Champions League and we will have to cope with that. And then we come back to the league again with full commitment. 

“What we want is to arrive at the last part of the season being able to compete in all the competitions, that is our objective. Our clear focus is always on the next game. 

“Then we have to play the Nedbank Cup, out of the schedule that was not panned and that will give us new challenges. Let’s hope we can have a good Champions League knockout stage because we are playing against a strong opponent. 

“And later take this championship to the latter stages where we hope to be in a good position to win it.”