PSL is forgiving, Dortmund weren't: Cardoso takes brave approach, Ronwen owns THAT error

News24

6 days ago

It was always going to be a challenge of epic proportions, and when the final whistle echoed at the end of an exhilarating Group F clash at the 2025 Club World Cup, Mamelodi Sundowns could hold their heads high, knowing they are not so far behind Europe's elite – despite falling 4-3 to German giants Borussia Dortmund.
The TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, was the backdrop for this fixture, which saw the North American sunshine beaming. Conditions were quite the opposite of what was expected for a winter sport, as the heat exceeded 30° Celsius and humidity touched 70%.
Dortmund had left their substitutes in the dressing room, but for Sundowns, it wasn't much different to what they are used to playing in Africa, where the season starts in spring and by the time winter hits, the season is done.
Masandawana took an early lead, which should have been their second had Tashreeq Matthews buried his chance, with Lucas Ribeiro scoring a solo effort. But it was short-lived as Dortmund clawed back with an error from 'keeper Ronwen Williams. His misplaced pass found Felix Nmecha, who slotted the equaliser home with ease.
The floodgates then opened, which could have been avoided, but mistakes proved costly, as Serhou Guirassy and Jobe Bellingham scored, followed by an unfortunate own goal from Khuliso Mudau.
Iqraam Rayners and Lebo Mothiba then buried goals late in the match to make it an entertaining yet nervy ending for Dortmund.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Cardoso admits to being proud of his troops, but they are ultimately not happy, simply because they know that at least two of the goals that came Dortmund's way should not have occurred.
'We made one season playing our style of football and didn't make one single mistake,' Cardoso began to express, who has only been at Sundowns since December last year, replacing Manqoba Mngqithi.
'Today, we made two [mistakes] on the build-up. Do you think I have any capacity to complain about my players when they gave me so much? For one mistake?
'Football is a game of mistakes. I have made many mistakes when I choose players. There are more than 15-20 players I can't play – so there are mistakes. So, I support these players highly, that's what I did at half-time.
'Most of my talk was to support the players, sitting by their side, saying let's do this together. It would be very easy to penalise a player like Teboho [Mokoena], but how can I penalise a player who has an intentionality to [do] well? The level of pressure is so much higher in games like this.
'The number of pressures they are submitted to is so high that mistakes can happen. So, I supported the boys – there's no other way in this club, with me, until the end.
He added: 'How can I build trust that when there's a mistake, I don't give them trust? As much as you give the most, I give back… that's my approach.'
The defeat leaves Sundowns in third place with three points, while Dortmund sit second on four points.
Fluminense soared to the top of the group, ahead on goal difference, following their 4-2 win over bottom-placed Ulsan HD.
'Good lessons'
Williams revealed that he had intended to pass the ball to Teboho Mokoena, but the midfielder quickly vacated his original position, allowing the ball to fall into the path of Nmecha.
'It's not nice to concede a goal like that but we're a team that takes risks and before I received the ball, I saw Tebza there, but he got a call from Marcelo to move away, so it was just one of those unfortunate situations, but we learn from it and we keep going,' Williams said as quoted by Goal.com.
'There's not really [a big gap in intensity and physicality], we showed that we can compete, yes, they are obviously physically bigger, but it's all about the mind, if your mentality is right, you can go out there and compete with the best, that's what we showed.
'We had very good chances in the first half, I am just so proud of the boys for the effort, the desire and the fight, the gap is not that big, we proved that once again.'
Williams further admitted that in South Africa's Premier Soccer League, Sundowns are prone to playing high-risk football – a trait that was evident against Dortmund.
However, he noted that while Masandawana often get away with costly errors in the domestic league or in Africa, that was not the case against the German giants on the day.
'Yes [it's disappointing], that was the talk for this week, at this level, if you make mistakes they punish you, which we learnt the hard way today – I think all of their goals are mistakes, errors from us, where at this level you get punished,' he said.
'Where we come from, we get away with it [in the PSL], so this is good lessons, we shouldn't be disappointed, we played our football, showed our identity, so big up to the boys, lot of lessons to learn and to grow from this.'
Sundowns are back in action on Wednesday at 21:00 (SA time), where a victory against Fluminense will secure their passage to the Round of 16.
A draw could complicate matters, possibly forcing them to take out their calculators.
If Ulsan defeat Dortmund, the South Africans could still advance on goal difference.