Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso says the setback of Champions League elimination is driving them to do well domestically and next on their agenda are Golden Arrows in the Carling Knockout Cup on Tuesday.

Since they were knocked out by Angolan side Wiliete SC last month, the Brazilians recovered to register wins over Marumo Gallants and Durban City, scoring five goals and conceding one.

On Saturday, they thrashed Durban City 4-1 to reclaim the Betway Premiership top spot and now their attention is on the quarterfinal Cup match.

Sundowns have a chance to make three wins in a row in all competitions if they overcome the unpredictable Abafana Bes'thende.

With no travelling disruptions that come with playing in the Champions League, Sundowns are under pressure to be dominant locally and Cardoso says they want to reach the Fifa international break next week on a high.

"We have a big responsibility until the Fifa break and we need to position ourselves well in the two matches we have this week," he said.

"On Tuesday, we already have the Carling Knockout Cup match against Golden Arrows and at the weekend we have the CAF Super Cup against USM Alger.

"We had a big setback in our season [being eliminated from the Champions League]. We need to deal with that responsibly and the only thing we can do is to be as strong as we can.

"The only thing I can promise Mamelodi Sundowns fans is that we are going to push and fight for everything as much as we can.

"We promise hard work and determination, a lot of commitment and we need the energy from the fans and we need everybody to be positive around the team."

The Brazilians won their last two matches against Gallants and City without goalkeeper Ronwen Williams and it is unclear if he will be available against Arrows.

If he is not available, it is not only Cardoso who is going to be affected but also Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane, with the national team having an important Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifier against Kenya next week.

"We have been suffering a lot of losses, but players are coming back and we will have reinforcements that will make us stronger," Cardoso said.

"I am happy but thinking about Tuesday in the knockout match.

"There is no time for a lot of rest because after the Arrows match we have another important match on Sunday.

"But our focus now is on Arrows on Tuesday and we will think about the Super Cup on Tuesday night.

"Victories over Gallants and City were good but they should not make us lift our feet off the ground, because if we do that we will miss some steps.

"My job is to make the players believe and create trust between themselves because we still have a lot to do.

"We have had good things but, at the same time, we experienced bad ones, and we need to develop resilience."

Arrows, who have a new coach in Mandla Ncikazi, are not coming to Pretoria as underdogs and Cardoso and his players will remember that they gave them a tough time in the MTN8 semifinal in August.

After two legs, they were tied 3-3 and Sundowns went through to the final on away goals rule.

They are expecting to be given a run for their money once again.