Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has offered a glimpse into his plans for new signing Keanu Cupido, hinting at the versatile role the defender could play for the Tshwane giants.
The highly-rated defender was snapped up from Cape Town City FC during the 2025 January transfer window on a long-term deal.
Cupido caught the attention of Sundowns after producing solid performances for City in the past few years.
In a bid to beef up their squad for the second round of the 2024/25 season, Sundowns signed Cupido alongside Jayden Adams and Lucas Suárez, while Matias Esquivel returned from his loan spell with Club Atlético Talleres in Argentina.
The 27-year-old made his debut for Masandawana during their 2-0 win over Mpheni Home Defenders in the Nedbank Cup Last 16 on Sunday.
Cupido came on as a second-half substitute to help Sundowns tidy up at the back and secure a spot in the Nedbank Cup quarterfinals, where they will face the winner of the outstanding fixture between Royal AM/Milford FC and Sekhukhune United.
CARDOSO ENVISIONS KEANU CUPIDO FITTING IN CENTRE-BACK AND CENTRAL-MIDFIELD POSITION
After putting in a solid shift in the last minutes of the match against Mpheni Defenders, Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has envisioned Cupido fitting into the centre-back and central-midfield positions.
“First of all, it’s important to understand that when Cupido arrived at Sundowns, he was injured, but we worked very well with him, and we knew that we should hold on a bit before he could start playing,” Cardoso said.
“And he’s still not 100%. I spoke to him two days ago regarding the amount of time he feels he could play and what is comfortable to give him because I really wanted him to play [against Mpheni Home Defenders]. He was very clear and said 30 minutes will be proper to play.
“We gave him exactly that and I like what I saw because I know the type of player we got, he’s a player that can help us playing as a midfielder and he can help us playing as a centre-back.
“So we can have him in a line of three or in a five-defender line; he told me that he plays with left and right, but in the centre, he’s very good. He gave stability to the team because he’s a very calm player on the pitch, and he doesn’t have any stress from having the ball on his feet.
“I like the players that don’t have stress because stress is when the opponents have the ball, not when we have the ball; that speaks of the quality of the players.”
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