“The Magesi game was magic for most but tragic for us. It was definitely something you look back on,” Motsepe said.
A series of unfavourable results led to Manqoba Mngqithi’s demise as Mamelodi Sundowns coach.
Although last month’s Carling Knockout loss to Magesi FC sticks out like a sore thumb, Mngqithi’s days were numbered as early as their quarter-final exit in the MTN8 at the hands of Stellenbosch FC.
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Brazilians chairman Tlhopie Motsepe was at pains to emphasise that Mngqithi’s future wasn’t decided by just one game.
Mngqithi’s sacking has opened the door for Portuguese coach Miguel Cardoso who was previously on the books of Tunisian club Esperance.
“There are always considerations in serious appointments like changing a coach but it wasn’t the Magesi FC game that was the decider. The Magesi game was magic for most but tragic for us. It was definitely something you look back on,” Motsepe said.
“Someone came up to me at the end of the game and said this is why football is called the beautiful game and it’s tough to look at it from that perspective when you’re on the receiving end of a Cinderella story like that. What I know is that the performance inspired many amateur footballers and many coaches to say that this is possible and that’s the magic of cup football.
“We started the season having given the coaching team an opportunity to lead the club in the direction they saw fit. Unfortunately, we started with a stumble and we were knocked out of the MTN8. We had another unfortunate stumble against Polokwane City and there was just series of games where we never really saw the consistency that we would have hoped.
“The club was trending in the direction that we knew the club should be so the decision was made after a compounding of many factors and led us to the decision and then we had to make it fairly quick to put the coach and his team to be in the best position to see out the rest of the season.”
It was Cardoso’s Esperance team that knocked out Masandawana in the semi-finals of the CAF Champions League last season.
Sundowns sporting director Flemming Berg admitted that he was impressed with how well the Tunis-based club played under Cardoso.
“I remember when we played the first semi-final, I told the chairman that this is going to be difficult because they were a well-structured and organised team that played a good type of football,” Berg said.
“We struggled in the games so when it comes to that, the fit is very good when it comes to the way of playing football and we’re definitely aligned. Everything has to develop and if you’re standing still then you’re going backwards in modern football.
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“We’re certain that in Miguel, João Araújo, Fabio Fernandes and Pedro Azevedo together with Kennedy Mweene, Steve Komphela and all our analysts, we have a very strong set up and we’re very confident that we can take Mamelodi Sundowns to the heights we all want and the trophies we all want.”
