Pirates legends’ message to Ouaddou

Orlando Pirates legend Thulasizwe Mbuyane says Bucs head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou‘s future could be determined by Saturday’s MTN8 semi-final match results.

The Buccaneers host Mamelodi Sundowns at the Orlando Stadium in the first leg of the MTN8 semi-final on Saturday afternoon. Having lost back-to-back matches, Ouaddou is under pressure to turn the corner.

He was expected to hit the ground running since taking over from Jose Riveiro in June.

“But overall, Pirates played very well against Sekhukhune; they were just unfortunate not to score. And at the same time, we can’t take anything away from Sekhukhune; they defended very well. They were fighting,” Mbuyane told KickOff.

Ouaddou already feeling the heat at Pirates

“The Pirates’ coach played players we are not familiar with. Hopefully, he saw his mistake, and Mandla Ncikazi must also help him to understand these boys better,” he added.

“On Saturday, I couldn’t understand where he was failing, having such depth in the squad. But let’s give him a bit of time. Saturday’s MTN8 Cup match will determine whether he is worthy to keep or not.”

Another Orlando Pirates legend, Moeneeb Josephs, questioned Ouaddou’s tactics and squad selection.

“There is no excuse for him not to go on and win things, but for me, it seems that he is trying to put his own philosophy on the team he has. But why, when the job is being made so easily for you and what is handed over to you is just to tweak here and there,” said the former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper.