Ouaddou explains why Orlando Pirates have made so many signings

Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou says the club’s busy transfer window has been driven by the demands of competing for several trophies, including the CAF Champions League, during the coming season.

The Buccaneers have been among the most active clubs in the transfer market as they strengthen their squad for another demanding campaign.

Pirates will begin the new season seeking to defend the Betway Premiership, MTN8 and Carling Knockout Cup titles they won last season. Their domestic commitments will be accompanied by another attempt to progress further in the CAF Champions League after they failed to reach the group stages in the previous campaign.

Ouaddou believes the number of matches involved makes a larger squad essential. He said additional players would allow the coaching staff to rotate the team more effectively, manage workloads and reduce the risk of fatigue over the course of the season.

“This season, we have, if we go through the first stage, around 60 games, so it’s a lot,” said Ouaddou.

The French coach said the modern football calendar placed considerable pressure on players, with matches coming in quick succession and leaving limited time for recovery.

“We’ve seen in this modern football that we are playing in every after three games, the players need freshness, we need to protect them.

“It’s important to have a number of players, to have a kind of rotation, to protect them and to be able to give some good football to the fans.

“Nowadays, we’re pushing games and we forget the wellness of the players. If the player is tired, the fans cannot see good football.”

Pirates’ recruitment therefore reflects both their ambition to retain their domestic honours and their determination to make a deeper run in continental competition. The club’s failure to qualify for the CAF Champions League group stages last season has increased the importance of their next campaign, with the squad being prepared for the possibility of a significantly heavier schedule.

Ouaddou’s comments suggest that the club’s activity is not simply aimed at increasing competition for places. The head coach also wants to ensure that players can be rested and rotated without weakening the team’s performances across the different competitions.

With the potential for around 60 matches if Pirates progress through the first stage of the CAF Champions League, the coach considers squad depth a central part of the club’s preparations. He has also linked player welfare directly to the quality of football produced, warning that tired players make it harder to entertain supporters.

The Buccaneers’ focus now turns to managing the demands of a season in which they will attempt to retain the Betway Premiership, MTN8 and Carling Knockout Cup, while improving on last season’s CAF Champions League campaign.

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