Abdeslam Ouaddou Gives Wake Up Call To Pirates' Bafana Bafana Players

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Oswin Appollis

Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has issued a wake-up call to his Bafana Bafana internationals, saying he needs them to hit full fitness urgently after a slow start to the season.

The Buccaneers drew with AmaZulu, and also faced Milford and Durban City in their last three matches, but Ouaddou feels the team has been playing short-handed due to players returning late from international duty.

“My worry is when am I going to recover the international players fully fit? Today, I saw a fantastic game from Sibisi, top. Really, he played his role today. Sipho Chaine played his role,” Ouaddou said.

“But since the beginning of the season, I am playing with one or two men down. So, when am I going to recover them? I hope that happens as soon as possible because there is an emergency.”

Pirates had 7 players involved with Bafana Bafana during the FIFA World Cup qualifiers in the US: *Sipho Chaine, Kamogelo Sebelebele, Nkosinathi Sibisi, Thalente Mbatha, Oswin Appollis, Tshepang Moremi and Evidence Makgopa*. Mbatha and Makgopa are currently injured.

Ouaddou stressed that every point will count come May, and he can’t afford to wait for his stars to find form.

“You know that every point is very important. We are going to wait for these points at the end of the season. I need my international players to quickly land, let’s say, on our planet, in our hearts," he continued.

“The US is finished, and they need to quickly be part of the team spirit, understand the expectations of the club and the expectations of the fans, because football is very difficult to wait for. If we wait until December to get fit, it will be late. So, I really need them to come to the party.”

Pirates will be hoping the likes of Sebelebele, Appollis and Moremi shake off fatigue quickly as they push in the PSL, MTN8 and CAF Champions League.


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