Relieved Miguel Cardoso heaps praise on Mamelodi Sundowns players after surviving CAF Champions League scare: 'These boys deserve the world'

Mamelodi Sundowns beat MC Alger 2-0 at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday to reach the CAF Champions League.

A brace from Brayan Leon secured maximum points for the Brazilians, who went through to the quarter-finals while placed second in Group C with two points less than leaders Al Hilal.

The Tshwane giants had started the afternoon third on the log, with pressure on coach Miguel Cardoso, who had some fans calling for his dismissal.

But the Portuguese can afford to breathe, for now, as he lauds his players for a performance that saved him the blushes.

Naturally, Cardoso's tone sounded like that of a relieved man as he expressed delight at what he witnessed on the pitch.

“I think we made a wonderful match, wonderful… understanding what to do in every moment of the game, Champions League is this, Champions League is showing the understanding of everything that’s happening on the pitch,” said Cardoso as per iDiksi Times.

“We knew that we had to make a strong start and we did, we scored a goal, we knew they would change the dynamics, try and bring something else, but we knew we had to keep the ball, play the game and try to find the second goal and not drop [deep]," the Portuguese added. 

“These boys deserve the world, I’m so proud, today I feel proud of the energy we had from the stands… I appealed to the fans to focus on what is important and not be distracted from the way and the togetherness we need to have. 

“The Ubuntu spirit was on the pitch, in the stands, and it united us – this is the family of Masandawana – that’s all we have to be until the end of the season," Cardoso further explained.

“When you play a game with a 1-0 advantage and try to protect the result, you can lose, and we didn’t do that – we understood which moments to play and focused on going for the second goal.

“We made some corrections at half-time, and we brought the right attitude, tactically and strategically, and a good mindset, ice on the ice but fire on the heart," the tactician concluded.