Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Miguel Cardoso has provided some insight into working with assistant coach Steve Komphela after what has been a busy week for him and his technical team.
The defending champions made it two on the bounce with a 1-0 triumph over Stellenbosch FC at DHL Cape Town Stadium on Wednesday night.
The deciding goal came courtesy of Iqraam Rayners, who was also on the score sheet in a win with a similar scoreline over Moroccan outfit Raja Casablanca in the CAF Champions League just three days prior.
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With two games in a short period of time, Cardoso has barely had time to settle.
However, the Portuguese-born mentor admits he has been helped by his technical team that includes Komphela and Kennedy Mweene - who were both retained from the Manqoba Mngqithi era.
"In terms of working with ourselves, with the group of people that we joined, it was very easy," Cardoso told journalists after the match.
"In working with the group of people we found at Chloorkop, it is easy. Coach Steve is an amazing person, easy to relate to and he has a mindset that has easily touched us.
"It is the same with coach Kennedy, Mathias[Zangenberg] and the rest of the fitness, analyst and medical departments.
"So, the fitness department, the analysts, I think we indeed felt inside [part of] a family. When you are coming from another country, we bring our excitement obviously, our energy, but we are so well received, that things flow easier. And I feel that they flowed from the very first day," he added.
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With the Carling Cup taking centre stage this weekend, Sundowns and Cardoso will have a welcome week for recovery.
"And we need this air, let's say, to breathe. For example, I can tell you there's one player who stayed, and we gave him two days without training so that he can breathe a little bit and feel himself more comfortable too, then proceed the preparation.
"But also at the same time, obviously, we need to gain time on the preparation. So, we need the practices, but we also cannot push them too much.
"We must be clever on managing the effort, and we must be clever also managing the training sessions so that we don't take them too much on one side, but also we don't stop progressing in the work.
"So, quite a challenge, but a wonderful challenge for a coach."