Ouaddou warns of ‘most difficult’ game as Pirates face Sekhukhune

Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou says his side must produce their best performance of the season when they meet Sekhukhune United in the Carling Knockout quarter-finals on Saturday.

Pirates have won eight of their past 10 matches in all competitions, drawing one and losing one, but Ouaddou believes their strong recent form does not mean they have reached their full potential.

“The confidence is there, especially because we’ve been so balanced in the games we’ve played. We have kept our values, solid at the back, scoring goals, and that is something that can give confidence to the players,” Ouaddou said at a press conference at the PSL offices in Parktown on Thursday.

The match will be played at Orlando Amstel Arena, with kick-off scheduled for 3pm. Victory would send Pirates through to the semi-finals and keep their bid to defend the Carling Knockout title on course.

Ouaddou said his team still needed to improve their ability to control matches, despite their defensive solidity and goalscoring form.

“We are not perfect and every game is another battle where we have to improve. Even though we are doing well, I am not 100% convinced about some areas that we still need to work on. I want to be satisfied with these areas, especially in terms of controlling games.”

The coach expects Sekhukhune to provide a particularly difficult challenge because Pirates have already defeated them three times this season.

Pirates beat Sekhukhune 2-0 in the league before recording wins of 1-0 and 3-0 in the two-legged MTN8 semi-finals. Ouaddou believes those results could make Saturday’s opponents even more determined to prevent a fourth defeat.

He also highlighted the influence of Sekhukhune coach Papi Zothwane, who caused problems for Pirates while serving as Richards Bay’s co-coach last season. Zothwane’s side held Pirates to a 2-2 draw in the second round of the league campaign.

“It will be one of the most difficult games we’ve ever played. Why? Because we have already hurt Sekhukhune three times this season. Again, this coach [Zothwane] who is in charge now gave us a lot of problems when he was at Richards Bay last season,” Ouaddou said.

“We need to be at the height of our form to win this game. We need to defend our title.”