Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso says Lucas Ribeiro is his choice for Footballer of the Season.
Image: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images

The Betway Premiership has reached the business end and football supporters are expressing opinions about which player rose head and shoulders above the rest during the season. 

Coaches are also entitled to their opinions on the matter and Miguel Cardoso of Mamelodi Sundowns has picked his midfielder or attacker Lucas Ribeiro as his preferred choice for the coveted Footballer of the Season award. 

Ribeiro, who has gone off the boil to some extent in recent weeks, started the campaign in blistering form and is the league’s leading goalscorer with 13 strikes, while he also has seven assists after 22 matches. 

So impressive has been his form there was talk the South African Football Association should consider naturalising him to be eligible to play for Bafana Bafana, something the 26-year-old Brazilian has said he is open to. 

Besides his goals and assists, Ribeiro has shown excellent skill and control of matches and has formed a strong understanding with fellow attackers Peter Shalulile, Irqraam Rayners and Arthur Sales. 

“You must have seen the beautiful goals he scored and the moments he produced to carry the team forward,” Cardoso said after Sundowns registered a dominant 3-0 win over Chippa United to move within four points of winning the league for the eighth successive season on Wednesday night. 

“We are a group that promotes players to always have moments to help the team. For me he is the favourite — I don’t see anyone having expressed the level Lucas reached for a long time.

“Even in the previous years he has been a consistent player. This season he expressed things that are difficult to see and that have to do with the work of the team and his own capacity.

“I will be happy [if he wins the award] because it will be fair if he becomes the Footballer of the Season.” 

The Brazilians need four points — which is assuming Orlando Pirates win all their remaining matches — to claim the championship but Cardoso said his side will focus until the last game. 

“We have big respect for our next match against Stellenbosch, they are always a difficult team to play against. After Stellenbosch we play Chippa United and we have just heard that match will be played in a smaller stadium [moved from Gqeberha to Buffalo City Stadium in East London due to a political rally]. 

“After that, we have Magesi FC at home but everything depends on us. Our direct opponents [Pirates] will play matches until the end of the month and that is going to allow them to play games after we finished our season. 

“It is not desirable because every team should play at the same time but we need to focus on the next match and fight to win it. Our direct opponents will not play at the weekend because of the Nedbank Cup final. 

“We have to respect the league in our remaining matches. We will try to do our best and get as many points as possible. We will celebrate properly when it is mathematically guaranteed we have won the league.”