The head coach of Mamelodi Sundowns, Miguel Cardoso, warned his players that defending the title in the CAF Champions League will face an early test during the trip to Angola to meet Wiliete on Sunday.
The Brazilian team will face the Angolan club in the second preliminary round. The match is scheduled for 17:00. They know they will face a squad that is showing an impressive start to its domestic season.
Currently, Wiliete leads the Girabola tournament, having accumulated 16 points in six matches and remaining undefeated, making them a potentially dangerous opponent despite their relatively low profile on the continental stage.
Sundowns automatically advanced to the next round due to their high ranking, while Wiliete secured their spot in the second round after defeating the Seychelles team Foresters 5-0 on aggregate over two matches.
Cardoso strongly urged his team to approach this confrontation with due seriousness, warning that Wiliete's domestic form poses a threat that cannot be ignored. He stated: 'We must respect this qualifying round very seriously and aggressively. This was not a friendly match.'
He added: 'Sometimes we face teams where we know: 'We can handle it,' but this is a difficult match, and they (Wiliete) are leading the Angolan championship. After our return from Durban, we have already studied them, and it is clear that this is a team that will cause us problems, and we need to focus.'
Sundowns enters this task after a demanding period that included a triumph in the MTN8 tournament over Orlando Pirates and a game in the Betway Premiership against Richards Bay. Due to accumulating domestic and continental commitments, Cardoso is also preparing his squad for careful management to keep the players fit during a period of high workload.
The Portuguese coach has already called on fans to trust the technical staff's decisions, explaining that rotation will be determined by the players' condition, readiness, and motivation. The goal is to maintain Sundowns' competitive level while giving the team enough time to recover to cope with the schedule.
For the defending champions, the first match on Sunday offers an opportunity to gain an advantage before the return fixture, but Cardoso's message is clear: Wiliete's form demands respect, and Sundowns cannot afford to approach the match with complacency. The team's ambitions in the Champions League will depend on how effectively they handle this early hurdle, especially playing away against a rival who has not yet suffered a defeat in their domestic league this season.