Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has shed light on the ‘difficult’ situation facing Fawaaz Basadien at the club following his high-profile switch from Stellenbosch FC.
Sundowns won the race to sign Basadien, who was reportedly on the radar of the Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates. The talented defender joined the reigning Betway Premiership champions alongside Tsiki Ntsabeleng, and two Portuguese stars, Nuno Santos and Miguel Reisinho.
The previous transfer window saw Sundowns take a cautious approach, signing only a few players and opting to offload more in a bid to build a small and manageable squad.
After moving to greener pastures at Downs, Basadien has struggled to cement his place in the starting line-up, with Aubrey Modiba being the preferred choice in the left-back position.
In the aftermath of limited playing minutes, Basadien lost his place in the Hugo Broos Bafana Bafana squad, and he could miss out on the 2025 AFCON, pencilled in Morocco in December and January.
CARDOSO REVEALS THAT BASADIEN IS STRUGGLING WITH COMPETITION
His coach at Sundowns, Miguel Cardoso, has spoken out on the adaptation of the new players at Sundowns, stating that Basadien’s lack of game-time is caused by Modiba’s impressive form.
“We brought in four new players and I think this was the smallest market in the past five years for Mamelodi Sundowns,” Cardoso said after Masandawana beat Remo Stars 7-1 on aggregate to book a place in the CAF Champions League group stage.
“It doesn’t mean that it [the transfer window] was not good; they had different processes of integration. With Fawaaz, I want you to understand the word I’m going to use; he’s struggling with his competition.
“He’s not the only one who’s struggling; all of them are struggling because there’s a lot of competition in that position. Asekho Tiwani is struggling. Thato Sibiya and Divine Lunga are also struggling.
“Aubrey is at a good level at the moment. Let’s hope that he can continue, but you never know. So Fawaaz’s situation is more difficult because of the level of competition in his position.”
The former Moroka Swallows defender has featured in only six appearances across all competitions since arriving at Sundowns.
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