New Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso started his reign with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Raja Casablanca in their CAF Champions League group stage tie played at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday afternoon.
Sundowns made their intentions clear by putting Raja under immense pressure earlier on but were wasteful as Iqraam Rayners overan the ball in the 21st minute.
Adam Ennaffati whipped in a cross in the 19th minute but Mosa Lebusa made the all-important block to concede a corner kick.
In the 26th minute, Lucas Ribeiro had a chance to break the deadlock after a one-two play with Rayners but the Raja defence stood firm with Anas Zniti rushing to make an easy save.
Ribeiro then tried his luck from just outside the Raja box in the 28th minute but his shot lacked venom.
Ronwen Williams made a huge interception in the 43rd minute when he was called into action by rushing off his line to punch away a whipped-in cross as both sides headed down the tunnel at the break still locked at 0-0.
In the 47th minute, Marcello Allende pulled the trigger but once again Zniti dived low to make another save.
Malibongwe Khoza wasted a glorious opportunity in the 56th minute when his header from close range missed the target and sailed high into the stands.
Substitute Kutlwano Letlhaku was next up to waste a chance after breaking through the Raja defence in the 59th minute but also skied his shot.
The home side took the lead in the 65th minute via Rayners who unleashed a low shot from the edge of the box to give his side a 1-0 lead.
The win propelled Sundowns to five points as they picked up their first win in the group stage to move joint top-of-the-table with ASFAR.
