Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has addressed the crushing disappointment of losing his second consecutive CAF Champions League final, as his side fell short against Pyramids FC.
On Sunday night, his Sundowns team lost to Pyramids FC at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo, echoing last season’s heartbreak when his Esperance side fell to Al Ahly in the same prestigious final.
Despite Sundowns’ history as 2016 champions and their dominant performance in large parts of the first-leg, missed opportunities and defensive lapses across both legs ultimately proved to be their undoing.
Pyramids striker Fiston Mayele opened the scoring in the first-half, and defender Ahmed Samy then sealed Sundowns’ fate with a second-half goal. While Iqraam Rayners managed to pull one back for Sundowns, it wasn’t enough to halt the Egyptian side’s determined march to glory.
They secured a 3-2 aggregate victory over the South African giants, claiming their first-ever continental trophy. This triumph marks Pyramids as the fourth Egyptian club—joining Al Ahly, Zamalek, and Ismaily—to lift the coveted CAF Champions League title.
BITTER DEFEAT, BUT PRIDE REMAINS FOR CARDOSO AND SUNDOWNS
In the wake of Sundowns’ defeat in the final, Cardoso reflected on the profound mix of emotions that accompany such a moment.
While acknowledging the disappointment of not clinching the trophy, Cardoso’s immediate reaction wasn’t despair, but rather a complex mix of pride in Sundowns’ journey and a clear-eyed recognition that something crucial was missing on the night in Cairo.
“The way we played since I arrived at Sundowns can only make me feel proud. So the fact that we are not happy, that I’m not happy, doesn’t mean that I’m not proud of everything we did until the moment we arrived at the final,” said Cardoso.
“But at the same time, I think that something missed for us to be at the level we needed in order to win. It is not a question of who was the best or who was worst, because when there is a winner, it means they were better.
“What I feel is that in some moments we did not find a way to compete at the level that we should have competed in order to win the trophy. Anyway, not many people, players, coaches, members of staff, board members, and clubs play finals of the Champions League and have the right to win a medal.”
CARDOSO HAILS SUNDOWNS’ CHAMPIONS LEAGUE JOURNEY DESPITE FINAL DEFEAT
The Portuguese coach also highlighted the challenging path Sundowns navigated to reach the final, emphasising the calibre of opponents they overcame and the progress the club has made under his guidance.
“I would like to remind everyone that on the way to the final, we played Al Ahly, who are still the first team in the CAF rankings, and we beat them in the semi-final, and we played Esperance, and we beat them, and they are second in the CAF rankings,” he added.
“And when we arrived at Sundowns, the club was struggling in order to pass the group stages of the Champions League, we had immediately a very tough game against Raja Casablanca, in a very tough group, which also had AS FAR. We were able to make the group stage.
“All I mean is that throughout the tournament our players were able to show great commitment, great attitude and also quality and getting them to the final obviously makes me very proud. The feeling when you play a final and you don’t win, the defeat is obviously very bitter, very disappointing. ut as I said before the match…I have a wonderful group of men in my locker room who are at this moment suffering, but they will get up as true champions that they are…”
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