Pitso feels let down by some Sundowns players in Cup loss
Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Pitso Mosimane believes some of his players did not turn up during his team's MTN8 semifinal loss to SuperSport United.
Pitso Mosimane (Samuel Shivambu/BackpagePix)
Sundowns bowed out of the competition after losing 2-0 to Matsatsantsa in the second leg of the MTN8 clash at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Wednesday night.
“In the first half, we didn’t create many chances. I thought [in the second-half] to freshen the team, let me put on Lebohang (Maboe) and ‘Vila’ (Sibusiso Vilakazi) but we did not turn up in the first half. A lot of the guys did not turn up, it’s okay, it’s a Cup game, sometimes you gonna lose,” Mosimane told SuperSport TV.
Mosimane also congratulated the referee for handling the match well in the second half and also wished SuperSport coach Kaitano Tembo luck in the final of the MTN8.
“Firstly, I need to congratulate the referee, he picked up in the second half. He did well. Okay, there are those little things that we as coaches are not happy with but not major. He’s one of the younger ones, coming up.
“(I also want) to congratulate Kaitano… his tactics were very good, spot on. Very awkward for us to get what we want. I think what helped them is that they got an early goal, which we did not want at that time. After that, it was a difficult game for the last 70 minutes.
“The second goal came, it’s normal because we are pushing up we want to equalise. You’ll always get a counter-attack like that. They played very well, they are a difficult team to play against, to be honest. You have to understand that.
“They play differently, they are awkward balls [which] fall for them. It’s one of those, what are you gonna do? We should understand that we can’t win all the games also. We played okay in the second half, we could have done better.”
“We should give credit, they deserve it. I hope Kaitano goes on to win it. He deserves it. He deserves a break, it’s going to be his first one. Why not? Everybody deserves a break, so I hope he gets it [the Cup],” concluded Mosimane.
The final between SuperSport and Highlands Park is set to be played at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday, October 5.
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