Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has revealed the big factor behind Neo Maema's reduced playing minutes this season, after the midfielder put in two impressive performances for Bafana Bafana in the CHAN qualifiers.
Maema captained and was on the score sheet for Molefe Ntseki's Bafana side in a 3-1 second leg CHAN qualifier win over Egypt.
A week prior, he had put in a standout performance in the first leg in Bloemfontein, where the sides drew 1-1.
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Somewhat surprisingly, though, the midfielder has made just two appearances for Sundowns in 2025 and featured 13 times since the start of the season, prompting questions over his place in the star-studded squad.
Speaking to media after Sundowns' win over AmaZulu FC on Tuesday, Cardoso insisted that the 29-year-old remains a key member of his team.
"I understand and I'm even grateful for the question. I didn't watch the second game, I saw the highlights of the first match and read some of the comments about him from the public. I spoke with them (Terrence Mashego and Maema) via message, I congratulated them," said Cardoso.
"What I have to say regarding the players is when a player gets an opportunity at Sundowns, they must grab it with both hands. Because there are many players and when you miss an opportunity once or twice, then another player comes and does well and then it becomes quite difficult to go back.
"That's what happened with Neo.
"Neo is a player that has the quality. I believe in him so much, sometimes you just have to wait for the right moment.
"And let me remind you that when I arrived, Neo was in the starting XI, in the first match against Raja (Casablanca). So, he's a player that we trust amongst other players.
"He is a player that I have been speaking about because he is a player that I know has quality. In the last period of time, he has not been playing much and that obviously does not make him happy.
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"I'm happy he did well in the national team... it's not a problem of quality on Neo, it's a matter of expressing it in a regular basis," explains the former Esperance gaffer.
Encouraging words for the left-footed star as Sundowns look to wrap up the defence of their league title as early as possible, whilst hoping to go all the way in the Nedbank Cup and CAF Champions League, in which Cardoso may need to call on squad depth to see the side through.