Abdeslam Ouaddou backs tough approach after Orlando Pirates return to winning ways

Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has defended his decision to publicly criticise his players, saying their response in the 3-0 victory over Chippa United justified his “tough love”.

The Buccaneers went into the match under pressure after being held to a disappointing 1-1 draw by AmaZulu in midweek. Ouaddou was particularly unhappy with the team’s performance and application after that result, making his frustration clear in his post-match comments.

However, Orlando Pirates produced a stronger display against Chippa United to move back to winning ways and climb above Kaizer Chiefs into top spot.

The defending champions were unable to break the deadlock before half-time, but they took control after the break. Ghampani Lungu opened the scoring before Lebone Seema doubled the advantage, with substitute Daniel Msendami completing the victory.

Ouaddou said he believed the players needed a strong reaction from him and felt they provided exactly that at Kings Park Stadium.

“Like I told you, I think my boys gave me a great response today. You know when a father or big brother is shouting in the dressing room who knows better than me the psychology of my players,” Ouaddou told SuperSport TV post-match.

“So, people talk too much to say the coach he cannot talk like that in the media, I’m expecting an answer and sometimes you need to be a little bit hard with your boys to have this kind of performance.

The French-born coach said Orlando Pirates had expected a difficult opening 45 minutes and did not allow the goalless first half to unsettle them. Instead, the technical staff used the interval to make tactical changes, particularly involving the positioning of the forwards.

“We had a difficult first half, we knew it would be difficult. But to be honest, we were not panicking because at the halftime we were just spoke calmly and we make some tactical adjustments especially our front-line in order to be between the lines and intervals and we were so calm.

“And they gave me a very good answer today, now the question mark are we going to be consistent in the future, it’s my hope,” he added.

The result lifted Orlando Pirates above Kaizer Chiefs and restored their position at the top of the table, but Ouaddou acknowledged that maintaining that level of performance will be the next challenge.

His comments came after a week in which his public assessment of the squad’s effort had attracted attention. Ouaddou, though, said he had no regrets about speaking so directly and maintained that demanding more from his players was intended to produce a response on the pitch.

That response arrived after the break against Chippa United, with Lungu, Seema and Msendami providing the goals that secured three points for the Buccaneers.