Pirates legend questions star player’s absence

Sipho Mbule’s absence during Orlando Pirates’ defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns, and again against Casric Stars, has sparked questions in football circles. The latest comes from the great Steve Lekoelea.

Mbule, returning from the Africa Cup of Nations break, was left out of 20-man squad for the match. This quickly fueled speculation about his relationship with coach Abdeslam Ouaddou.

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STEVE LEKOLEA ON ABDESLAM OUADDOU AND SIPHO MBULE

“The problem of Mbule maybe he’s not doing well at training or he’s not training, I don’t know, but it’s between the coach, the player and the team,” Lekoelea told Soccer Laduma. 

“(If) they can resolve that issue, because I don’t understand why he did not play. I think the coach knows.”

IN THE WORDS OF THE ORLANDO PIRATES COACH

Ouaddou himself stressed accountability after the game. “It becomes crucial that you need to finish in the last third, I have been saying that – but it’s becoming a sickness, and if you want to be more ambitious, let’s convert the chances. Let’s be serious, let’s be more serious in the last third,” he said.

He continued: “We’re not here to play circus, we’re here to compete and there’s a lot of expectations from the club, from the fans – it’s a huge club in Africa, everybody is ambitious here, I am very ambitious and I will not hide, we want to win the title!

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“We will not hide it and if some people don’t want to win the title, I think they have to put their hands up and say it, because I don’t want to lose time with people who want to joke on the pitch, I don’t want to lose time, I’m not here for that!”

Mbule eventually returned from the bench in a later win over Marumo Gallants, but the circumstances of his Sundowns omission continue to intrigue supporters and pundits alike.

DO YOU EXPECT SIPHO MBULE TO RETAIN HIS STARTING PLACE THIS SEASON?

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