Cardoso made the pointed remarks after watching his side return to the top of the Premiership table with a convincing 4-1 victory over Durban City at Royal Bafokeng Stadium.

Rather than dwell solely on Sundowns’ attacking display, the Portuguese coach turned his attention to incidents from the afternoon’s Soweto derby between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, as well as decisions he felt had gone against his own team.

“I have to confess that I didn’t see the match in the afternoon, but I just saw the (referee) incidents and I think everybody saw the incidents,” Cardoso said.

He then questioned why Sundowns had not been awarded penalties during their own match, drawing an apparent comparison with the controversial decisions elsewhere.

“It’s one more day again to remember for South African football,” he said. “I just want people to also see the penalties that we had today that were not given because the mistakes look like they always fall for the same side.”

Cardoso nevertheless insisted that his players must avoid becoming distracted by officiating and concentrate on matters within their control.

“For us, we have to play every match and concentrate on what we can control. What we can control is our performance,” he said.

On the pitch, Sundowns recovered from a narrow half-time advantage to take control after the interval, with Thabang Matuludi scoring twice and Iqraam Rayners and Antonio van Wyk also finding the net.

Cardoso praised his players’ response to the half-time instructions, particularly their ability to identify space and increase the tempo against a well-organised opponent.

The victory takes Sundowns to 26 points from 10 matches, one ahead of Pirates, who have a game in hand. The champions have reclaimed first place, but their coach’s post-match comments ensured that refereeing remained firmly in the spotlight.