Nduli believes that with the chances they created, they should have easily won the game.
Orlando Pirates midfielder Sihle Nduli says the Buccaneers “threw the game away” against Marumo Gallants.
This comes after the Buccaneers suffered a 2-1 loss to Bahlabane Ba Ntwa in a Betway Premiership clash played at the Dr Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein on Tuesday.
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It was Pirates’ second defeat in as many games after they lost 1-0 to Sekhukhune United in their opening match of the season.
Nduli, who partnered Abdoulaye Mariko in the middle of the park for Pirates, believes that with the chances they created, they should have easily won the game.
“I think we started the game well and created a lot of chances, but we only managed to score one. With the chances we created, the game should have been done and dusted in the first half. We threw away the three points. We conceded silly goals,” said Nduli.
Ouaddou under pressure at Pirates
Pirates’ sluggish start to the 2025/26 Betway Premiership season has brought an early pressure to new coach Abdeslam Ouaddou.
Pirates next face Mamelodi Sundowns in the first leg of the MTN8 semifinals at home at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday and another loss in this encounter could put more pressure on him or worse, he could be shown the exit door.
The Moroccan, who replaced Jose Riveiro at the end of last season, was at a loss for words to explain how Pirates, who dominated the game against Gallants from start to finish, lost it.
“We started the game very well, opening the score and creating a lot of chances again that we didn’t put in the net and like I said when you don’t score, you give the opponents an opportunity to finish you,” said Ouaddou after the game.
Ouaddou added that he and his technical team will go back to the drawing board and analyse what went wrong in Bloemfontein and try to fix it.
READ MORE: Ouaddou ‘disappointed’ after Pirates loss to Gallants
“We are going to analyse the game and to see what’s going wrong especially in the second half. We tried to make some changes to bring some fresh blood, Unfortunately, the changes we made didn’t give what we expect from them, their level.”
Meanwhile, Pirates will play Lioli FC of Lesotho in the first preliminary round of the CAF Champions League.
The preliminary round kicks off with first-leg matches between 19–21 September 2025 and second-leg matches between 26–28 September 2025. Pirates are away in Lesotho in the first leg.
