Orlando Pirates: Abdeslam Ouaddou explains defensive formula behind seven clean sheets

Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou says his team’s outstanding defensive record is built on discipline, aggression and the ability to switch instantly from attacking football to defensive work.

The Buccaneers have kept seven clean sheets in their eight Betway Premiership matches, making them the league’s strongest defensive side so far this season. Their defensive consistency has also provided the platform for the club’s Betway Premiership title triumph last season.

Following the latest clean-sheet victory against TS Galaxy, Ouaddou outlined the principles behind his team’s organisation and resilience.

The former Moroccan international defender, who spent 17 years playing in Europe, said defending required a different mindset from attacking.

“Look, first of all, we have to talk about resilience, character, personality, aggressiveness, co-ordination in terms of mentality. It’s very important because I always say that to chase, to defend, you need a different approach. You need to change the rhythm. I always use a metaphor. Let’s say, I don’t know if you can say that in English, a comparison.

“When we play in possession, you can play with the suit, with the tie – beautiful. But when you have to defend, you have to quickly, when you change the face (the face of the game), you have to quickly take off the suit with the tie, and nice shoes that are shining, and you put on the overall. It’s a different approach, and you need to work. You need to change the rhythm. You need to be very aggressive.”

Ouaddou said the metaphor reflected the mental change he expects from his players when possession is lost.

“I think it’s the mentality that I try to give to my players, to have this capacity to switch from the attacking position, the attacking face, sorry, to the defensive face. For that, it’s very important to give markers to the players, to think the same thing at the same moment and to be able to answer the question, where, how and when I want to recover the ball.”

Ouaddou demands complete commitment

The Orlando Pirates manager stressed that the system had to be practised repeatedly and depended on every player carrying out their role.

“It’s part of the learning of the guys. You have to train it. It took some time. It’s not easy. But when it’s successful and when the guys understand exactly, it can be interesting. But sometimes when the machine is not well-oiled, or if you have only one player who is not an making effort, who is cheating, it can miss all the organisation. So it’s why defensive organisation, it’s a lot of discipline. A lot of discipline and a lot of commitment.”

Ouaddou’s approach places collective responsibility at the centre of Orlando Pirates’ defensive structure. All 11 players must understand where, when and how to recover possession, with the coordinated approach making the Buccaneers one of the most difficult teams to break down in South African football.