The coach of Mamelodi Sundowns, Miguel Cardoso, believes that the team has become stronger after an emotionally difficult pre-season period interrupted by the tragic death of Jayden Adams.
The team, which is the reigning CAF Champions League champion, recently returned from a training camp in Europe. The delay in departure caused them to miss the first matches of the domestic season. The initially planned trip was postponed following Adams' death.
The squad first attended a memorial service in memory of the midfielder and then traveled abroad to continue preparations. Cardoso acknowledged that the team was in a difficult emotional state and could not immediately return to football, but he believes that the overseas camp created an ideal environment for players and staff to grieve together and support each other during this extremely difficult time.
Cardoso told the club's media department: 'I think this was a very important turning point from an emotional perspective. We unfortunately had to interrupt the pre-season due to Jayden's passing.' He added that after attending the memorial, the team was not in the best emotional condition, so 'leaving the country and some distancing from the context was very important.'
The Portuguese tactician noted that one of the main positive aspects of the trip was that the entire group was able to stay together while processing the loss of one of their teammates. 'I really think this is the first very positive aspect we should highlight: keeping the team together while we were still dealing with the funerals. It was very important that we could go through this collective emotional moment together.'
He continued that this was a positive aspect because, in his opinion, they finished the camp in a suitable state—mourning, honoring, but also sharing love and living that feeling.
In addition to emotional recovery, Cardoso believes that Sundowns achieved sporting goals by playing matches against higher-level opponents than usually encountered during the South African pre-season. 'Regarding the sporting part of the preparation, it is obvious that the club provides the team with a good opportunity. To come abroad where we can find opponents of such a level that is hard to find in South Africa, especially since we don't play in preparation against our strongest rivals. The mission is accomplished. Difficult opponents lie ahead, and this is a positive result.'
The Masandawana team will start its season with a match in the MTN8 tournament against Polokwane City on Saturday.