Arthur Sales may be one of the most expensive signings in Mamelodi Sundowns' history, but according to Miguel Cardoso, he was far from a favourite when the coach first arrived.
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Speaking in an interview on Sports Night Amplified, the Portuguese tactician opened up about his early impressions of Sales, as well as fellow South American imports Mattias Esquivel and Marcelo Allende.
“Sales was a player that when I arrived, was coming from an injury,” Cardoso explained.
“It was his first year in South Africa. It’s not the same coming to South Africa and we also needed to understand the way he is.”
Then came the frank admission that might have surprised fans and pundits alike.
“Believe me, in the beginning I said, 'I don’t like him. I don’t like the way he trains'. But I kept loving him, I understood that we needed to decide what kind of behaviours we want from him on the pitch and how to build the team, not around him, but to compliment him more.”
With a noticeable shift in his tone, Cardoso concluded by acknowledging how far the 22-year-old attacker has come.
“I think at the moment we have a wonderful Artur that is following the excitement of the team at the moment.”
Sales has begun to flourish under Cardoso’s evolving system, growing into a key component of a Mamelodi Sundowns attack that has swept aside opposition both domestically and on the continent this season.
“I think all the players that were taken to Mamelodi Sundowns are high quality players. The problem is not that they don’t have quality, because they do. The problem is that there are also other players in their positions that have quality.”
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Using Esquivel as an example, the coach explained how timing and limited training opportunities have made it tough for new signings to stake a claim.
“When he arrived, the team was already entering the flow moment. And it’s very difficult for a player to immediately have the capacity to equalize the other ones. We almost don’t train. We train together once between each match. That means he has one opportunity between two matches to show the coach he’s better than the others. It’s not like if you play Sundays where you train four or five times a week to enter the coach’s eyes.”
On Allende, Cardoso offered effusive praise, saying the Chilean playmaker still does not get the respect he deserves locally.
“Marcelo — with all due respect — I think in South Africa, people don’t give him the credit that he deserves. This boy is absolutely unbelievable.”
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