Mamelodi Sundowns have added Portuguese coach Ruben Jose Ribeiro Santos to Miguel Cardoso’s technical team as they continue strengthening their backroom staff. FARPost has established that the 38-year-old has arrived in South Africa and linked up with Cardoso and the rest of the technical team at Chloorkop.
Santos brings more than a decade of coaching experience, having worked as an assistant coach and physical conditioning specialist in Portugal and France. While Sundowns are yet to confirm his exact role, his background suggests he will be heavily involved on the training ground, particularly in conditioning and tactical preparation.
His most recent role was at French side Bourges Foot 18, where he served as an assistant coach after joining the club in July 2023. Before his move to France, Santos spent two seasons as a physical conditioning coach at Portuguese outfit SC União Torreense. Transfermarkt records show that he was with the club between July 2021 and June 2023.
He was part of the Torreense technical team that won the Portuguese third-tier championship and secured promotion to Liga Portugal 2 during the 2021/22 season. Santos had previously worked as an assistant coach at CDC Montalegre. That spell also ended with promotion as the club earned a place in Portugal’s Liga 3 at the end of the 2020/21 campaign.
RUBEN SANTOS BRINGS VARIED EXPERIENCE TO SUNDOWNS
Born in Sandim, Portugal, on 20 January 1988, Santos began his coaching journey at AD Grijó. He initially worked as an assistant coach with the senior team before taking charge of the club’s Under-17 and Under-19 sides. His spell with the Under-19s included a runners-up finish in the championship during the 2018/19 campaign.
Santos later took over the Grijó senior team in the 2019/20 season, adding head coaching experience to his résumé. His arrival is part of Cardoso’s continued efforts to build a strong support structure around the Sundowns first team. The Brazilians recently brought in Brazilian fitness specialist Diogo Missena Perpétuo following the departure of former head of physical performance Mathias Zangenberg.
Santos adds another Portuguese voice to Cardoso’s technical team as Sundowns look to reclaim their domestic dominance while continuing to chase continental success in both the CAF Champions League and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup.
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