Mamelodi Sundowns today announced the appointment of Miguel De Azevedo Cardoso as the new Head Coach of the Club with immediate effect.
The introduction of the new Coaching Technical Team was necessitated by the recent unsatisfactory results despite the commitment of the Sundowns Board to give Manqoba Mngqithi and his Technical Team an opportunity to lead the Club going into the future.
Coach Miguel was the Head Coach of Espérance Sportive de Tunis and reached the finals of the 2023/24 CAF Champions League.
He joins Sundowns with three of his assistants namely, Fabio Fernandes, Pedro Azevedo and João Araújo.
Coach Miguel, has coached in Portugal, Spain, France, Greece, and Ukraine at some of the biggest Clubs such as Porto, Braga, Deportivo La Coruna, Celta Vigo, AEK Athens, Nantes and Shaktar Donetsk.
Coaches Steve Komphela and Kennedy Mweene, will remain as part of the Club’s new Technical Team.
Mamelodi Sundowns is thankful to Manqoba Mngqithi and Wendell Robinson for their loyal services to the club over the years and wishes them everything of the best in their new endevours. Manqoba Mngqithi and Wendell Robinson will forever remain part of the Mamelodi Sundowns Family. Mamelodi Sundowns is also thankful to Romain Folz who recently joined the club.
The players will meet the recently appointed Coaches when they return to training on Wednesday.
ENDS
In Zulu we say “uzenzile akakhalelwa”Manqoba we warned you that stop sitting on the bench the whole game and being quiet only to blame the players on postmatch interviews after the damaged have been done,you used to praise Mkhulise only to bench him in the game and it seems you’re afraid of this players especially the internationals.
Now all of them will be new to the coach and they must work hard inorder to convince him and I know some will sit on the bench irrespective of their reputation,hardback together with Wendell you will not be there at CWC next year June and share the billion but wherever you go you must double your efforts and they will be no luxury of buying whoever you want to your new team that privilege is only at Downs phepha Mfowethu uzigwaze ngowakho uhambe kahle ayixabene Nkabi.
Welcome Message for Coach Miguel De Azevedo Cardoso
Dear Coach Miguel,
On behalf of all Mamelodi Sundowns supporters, we warmly welcome you to the Brazilians family! Your appointment marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for our club.
We believe in your vision, expertise, and leadership to guide Sundowns to even greater heights. Our ambitions are bold – we aspire to dominate every competition we enter, from the domestic league to the CAF Champions League, and even the FIFA Club World Cup.
The Masandawana faithful are fully behind you, ready to support and celebrate every triumph. Let’s work together to make history and cement Sundowns’ legacy as the best in Africa and beyond.
#WelcomeCoachMiguel
#YellowNation
#TheSkyIsTheLimit
This was long overdue it should have been done during our preseason.I once questioned the appointment of Manqoba because he was demoted owing to lacklustre performance yet he was promoted again for doing nothing and for this management should take full responsibility.Coach Cardoso welcome to the home of champions and your technical team.It is a clean slate.I so wish players are not going to be confused because they were yet to get used to Manqoba’s system and now they must adopt to another system.Let us all SUPPORT our new technical team. The sky is the limit.
Goodbye u were lucky to be Sundowns
Manqoba is a good Coach and I suspect players did not play for him
What makes me laugh and amazed at the same time the coach will be on the bench on Sunday in our game against Raja which means it’s been a long time they’re agreed on his appointment behind Manqoba’s back because as far as I know it’s takes weeks for the work permit to be granted.
Theo I agree with u Mngqithi is a great coach,but his problem is being mute the whole game&point all the mistakes bt not shouting any instructions what a weakling???In my entire history as a Sundowns supporter I don’t remember any coach directly coming from overseas &we won something.I advised Mngqithi 2 bring Ighordaro for aggression and 2 score goals bt he went 4 these Latin American players that play football like sissies.He lost[Manqoba]his job bcoz of being spineless had he took the decision 2 put Modiba, Mudau&Mokoena on the sidelines no matter what pressure until someone realizes that Sundowns is bigger than their cheap egos.And again had Mngqithi not given Allende a divine right 2 finish every minute bcoz I c nothing special abt Allende at all.Bt am not celebrating the removal of Mngqithi bt more than 10 games at Sundowns without any proven 1st eleven was a huge disappointment from someone who has bn around at the club.Manqoba u r a fool 2 let such big opportunity sleep out of ur grip.Hamba sidenge sakuthi we gave all the support bt u chose stupidity. Dd u know that the was a Club World Cup 2 ply 4.Welcome new technical team bt am not jubilant bt management had 2 do damage control.If Mngqithi had the audacity 2 tell the ppl that Sundowns should have won the game,a game he had 1 shot at goal & only the one that brought a goal Sundowns was starting 2 b Magesi now.
The most unfortunate part is Sundowns management never asked 4 the Carling Cup 2 b postponed bt let the coach 2 hav more than 9 players on national duty.Or else the management was supposed 2 liase with SAFA 2 excuse Sundowns players from participating in a dead rubber game against Sudan bt now the coach is sacrificial lamb.Thanks again 4 the vote of no confidence 2 Mngqithi,in reality he was taking us nowhere.I can’t even cry about Rhulani being fired that was another wise decision taken bcoz that boy was taking us nowhere except he thought Sundowns was his small project by bringing his cronies at Sundowns good riddance 2 a rotten potato.I so wish the coach will have the nerve 2 deal with all cheap egos at Sundowns.
Very disappointed with the dismissal of Manqoba, but on the other hand its good for the team his tactics in rotating players was his downfall.
I don’t remember any foreign coach that was successful at Sundowns and i have no much confidence in this new coach. The following will have serious impact on the performance of the team:
1. Language barrier
2. Adapting to the PSL.
3. His knowledge about the players
Steve Komphela should also be released he capable for nothing at Sundowns. Bryn in Orlando East Soweto.
I think Mr Mnqithi was under pressure to even make decisions on his own. Maybe the working environment was not conjucive for him to work. But that is football for you. All players who were hypocrites and subbotaching uMgqithi good luck to them
Let welcome the new coach and give him the benefit of the doubt. One of my fellow sundowns fan alude to the fact that foreign coaches never succeeded in sundowns
I’m confident the coach is going to succeed be cause the working environment are conducive for any coach to succeed unlike prior to Pitso taking over where Moloto and Makhanya were sabotaging coaches.We needed this change,we need a real leader not a coach who worships players and not decisive or one who friend-zones players.This is work environment therefore results first and friendship after,this is business not some pilot projects.Coach it is impossible to please us all.You rather fail doing what you believe in than fail doing what someone wants you to do,rather fail with players who are committed and hungry than with useless big name players. PLS PLS don’t discard our young talented players.AMEN.
New coach, Kabza de small look alike… Good luck coach
Berg Must Go
You can clearly see management was just impatient with the coach. I don’t think Cardoso is going to improve the team. The team has played so many matches and the downward spiral was visible even during Mokwena’s era. Manqoba had the strategy of rotating the team before that Hugo Broos came with his unfortunate comments. As supporters we need to put pressure on Berg to leave our team, he’s clearly the problem. No team has ever dominated for ever, and it was expected that the team will hit some slump. We need to stop this nonsense of undermining our own coaches at the expense of these Europeans.