Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has shed light on Monnapule Saleng’s return to the squad after a period of training alone.
In August, the Portuguese tactician revealed that Saleng had been sidelined following disciplinary issues.
However, the former Orlando Pirates attacker has since rejoined his teammates and was included in the travelling squad for this past weekend’s MTN8 final.
Cardoso explained that Saleng had conducted himself professionally during his time away from the team and complied with the club’s rules. His behaviour ultimately convinced the coach and Sundowns management to give him another opportunity.
“Look, in the same way I spoke about Saleng when I last spoke about him, we as a club, me, the Sport Director, the players, the captains and the chairman, we decided to give ourselves and Saleng an opportunity to move forward in a positive way,” said Cardoso when asked by iDiski Times about Saleng, who had been pictured in training.
“Saleng trained during a period alone and he trained quite consistently and with respect of the values that we need to have inside a professional team. And since he joined the team, he has kept that path. So we are happy that he shows consistency on training.”
Cardoso – Saleng’s Time Will Come
Cardoso admitted that Saleng would return to action in due course. Nevertheless, he highlighted the fierce competition for places at Sundowns, insisting that the winger would have to work hard, just like his teammates, to earn minutes.
“Obviously his time will appear in a certain moment, I’m pretty sure. When it will be? I don’t know. Obviously that you also understand, I’ve been stating that, in this year, this season, we have more options in the front than we had in the past,” he continued.
“You see, Arthur [Sales] is not here, Lebo Mothiba was here, but he’s not on the bench even. We have [Monnapule] Saleng, Tsiki [Ntsabeleng]. So, there are other players that also were not here today.
“They have to, between commas, fight between themselves to get a position. He will appear, I’m pretty sure he will appear. And it’s a player that we trust. When I mean trust, we are trying to create a positive relation between the parts so that I can trust him and he can trust me, we can trust each other.”
‘You Saw Me Celebrating With Him’
Cardoso also explained that celebrating the MTN8 trophy in the past weekend alongside Saleng in front of the supporters was a way of showing his support for the winger as he works towards making his return to competitive action.
“And on that moment, he will for sure be able to perform. You saw me celebrating with him, pushing him to lift the cup of the MTN8 because I support him, I totally support him,” he added.
“I think that we are a special club on that. Probably in other clubs he would not be in this process. But in Mamelodi Sundowns, we do want the best for everybody and we take ourselves to the limit in order to get what we want and to give what we want, to give to the football players.”