Miguel Cardoso, the Mamelodi Sundowns coach, sharply criticised the refereeing after the 4-1 win over Durban City, citing penalties not given to his side, who won thanks to a double from full-back Thabang Matuludi.
Mamelodi Sundowns beat Durban City 4-1 in the Betway Premiership, with a double from full-back Thabang Matuludi. After the match, however, Cardoso sharply criticised the refereeing, in comments reported by SuperSport TV via Briefly.
The win puts Sundowns back on top of the South African league, one point ahead of Orlando Pirates (source: Briefly). Cardoso marked that return to the summit with a double-edged speech, balancing satisfaction with the work done and a challenge to the refereeing decisions.
A press conference caught between emotion and insinuation
In front of the SuperSport TV cameras, Cardoso first chose his words carefully: “Today is a day of a lot of emotions. I will make my best efforts to shut up and not speak too much. I think it’s another night for South Africa, but let people think whatever; some people will sleep in a bed for sure”. A phrase that leaves room for doubt without explicitly naming the grievances.
The tone then went up a notch. “Honest people that work hard, even here today you should go look at the penalties that were taken from Sundowns. I don’t want to speak too much, but whoever has a conscience today should, before going to sleep, pray a little bit and think a little bit more together”, he said, according to the same source. According to Briefly, he was referring to penalties not given to Sundowns.
Matuludi’s double in the background
On the pitch, Matuludi opened the scoring in the 34th minute before doubling the lead in the 66th, according to Footafrica.net. Reinels added a third in the 79th, then Antonio Van Wyk wrapped it up in the 90+4th. Durban City, coached by Eric Tinkler, pulled one back through Jean Lwamba in the 86th.
The sources differ, however, on the scorers: Briefly also lists Iqraam Rayners among the scorers, alongside Van Wyk, whereas Footafrica.net credits Matuludi with the double and Reinels and Van Wyk with the other goals. The debate over exactly who scored what therefore remains open, but the 4-1 scoreline is confirmed by both sources.
Rotation a source of satisfaction
Beyond the controversy, Cardoso praised the rotation of his squad, which allowed his team to look fresher than in the previous match, according to Briefly.
The South African league continues after this ninth matchday, and Sundowns defend their top spot ahead of Orlando Pirates.