Mamelodi Sundowns star backed to find his shooting boots after a slow start - 'Strikers are a little like that'

The Tshwane giants' head coach has thrown his weight behind Lebo Mothiba, backing the forward to settle into his role at Chloorkop despite an underwhelming beginning to his spell.

Since joining the Brazilians, the 30-year-old's opportunities for the Pretoria team have come as a substitute behind Brayan Leon and Iqraam Rayners in the attacking pecking order.

The Portuguese coach feels Mothiba’s limited involvement has prevented him from establishing any real consistency, while his work on the training ground continues to offer encouraging signs.

"As a coach, I am trying my best for all players. The coaching staff works very hard, showing belief to the players, and you saw how I supported him in a moment that was difficult, because he missed a situation where it could have been a goal," Cardoso told the media.

"It was not the only one; there were many throughout the match that didn’t turn into goals.

"Two years ago, I remember a period where Lucas Ribeiro wasn’t scoring goals, and you were always speaking about that, about how he could not score and why – and I said one day it will come out and be one [goal] after the other and it happened."

The Sundowns coach also revealed that Mothiba’s work on the training ground has given him plenty of encouragement, particularly his attitude and ability in front of goal.

"Strikers are a little like that, and Lebo has not been the first option, as you know, Brayan and Iqraam have been the first options, so it’s normal when a player doesn’t play so consistently that to come in a match is more difficult to get into a rhythm," he added.

"Lebo shows good character and very good training matches and scoring in them, so he gave us all the energy."

The 54-year-old mentor also explained his approach to rotating the attacking options. The strategy is aimed at managing the squad’s workload while ensuring the forwards remain fresh throughout a demanding campaign.

"And as you may understand, Brayan comes from a pre-season where he didn’t have the chance to train consistently and now played three matches in a row.

"So, it was absolutely normal we had to rotate that player because Brayan was still too tired. He’s still too tired, as you saw in the second half; you saw he’s not as fresh as we’d like to have him," Cardoso concluded.

“So, the rotation had to do with that, just finding 45 minutes for each of them, that could give intensity, that’s what we looked for.”