““We know that every season the target is always very high,” said Ouaddou.
Abdeslam Ouaddou will be hoping to continue his bright start to his tenure as the new Orlando Pirates coach when the Buccaneers host Sekhukhune United in the Betway Premiership at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday (kickoff is at 5.30pm).
Ouaddou, who replaced Jose Riveiro as the Pirates head coach during the offseason, began his tenure with a convincing 2-0 win over Polokwane City in the MTN8 quarter final clash at the same venue last weekend.
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Ouaddou says the Buccaneers are excited ahead of the clash against Babina Noko, boosted by the win. against Babina Noko.
“The preparations for this game against Sekhukhune have gone well and the boys have trained well, so I’m happy with the preparations. My boys and I are very impatient to start the new season of the PSL (Betway Premiership),” said Ouaddou during the Pirates media day at the Rand Stadium yesterday.
“We know that every season the target is always very high. All the clubs have prepared well and like I said, the target is high. Of course, we did well in the MTN8 in a packed stadium and we’re expecting our supporters to come back and pack the stadium again to push our players.
“As for our opponents, we’re expecting a tough clash against them. We know that they will come to our stadium with a lot of ambition [to beat us], but we’re prepared for that. Physically and tactically, we’re prepared,” added Ouaddou.
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Having come second to Mamelodi Sundowns for the past three seasons, Ouaddou believes the Buccaneers have the quality to finally knock Sundowns off their perch.
“When you come to Orlando Pirates, the club has history,” said Ouaddou. “There’s expectation, and everyone has to be professional and focused.”
With Riveiro having failed to win the league title in three seasons, will Ouaddou do things different from him in order to achieve these targets or will he continue where the Spanish left off?
‘No need to fix what’s not broken’. That seems to be Ouaddou’s thinking as he embarks on this challenging journey.
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The Moroccan says he won’t try to overhaul what past coaches built but will build on it to make Pirates stronger and more competitive.
“I’m here to bring more competence and help the club meet the targets the board and fans expect,” he said.
“The season will be long and tough, but we believe in our quality and we’re going to fight hard,” concluded Ouaddou