Pirates boss Ouaddou calls for fresh legs before Chippa United clash

Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou says his players must recover physically and mentally if they are to return to winning ways against Chippa United in the Betway Premiership on Sunday.

The Buccaneers will face Chippa United at Hollywoodbets Kings Park Stadium in Durban, with the match scheduled to kick off at 15:00.

Pirates go into the game looking to respond after being held to a 1-1 draw by AmaZulu at the same venue in midweek. Their recent run of demanding, high-intensity matches has made recovery a central part of Ouaddou’s preparation for the weekend fixture.

The coach believes the squad needs to arrive at the match with enough energy to reproduce the best elements of their performance against AmaZulu. In particular, he wants Pirates to build on the combinations and attacking actions they produced after the interval in that game.

“First of all, the most important is the regeneration because to play another game with such intensity, you need to have the fresh legs, fresh mind as well,” said Ouaddou.

“And of course, we have to make the analysis to show the boys what we have done well and what we can improve.

“It’s like that, we are working like that since the beginning. The most important is to see which area we have to improve.

“But as well we need to show the very good actions, combinations that we did [against AmaZulu] in the second half because in the second half, there is a lot, a lot of positive things we did.”

Ouaddou’s assessment places equal emphasis on recovery and review. With another match following soon after the draw, the Pirates coach wants his players to regain their sharpness before focusing on the specific demands of the Chippa United encounter.

The AmaZulu match has given the coaching staff material to examine, both in the areas where Pirates performed well and those where improvement is required. Ouaddou said that process has been part of the team’s work since the beginning, with the priority being to identify the aspects of their game that need attention.

At the same time, the coach does not want the positive parts of the second half against AmaZulu to be overlooked. He highlighted the quality of the team’s movements and combinations and expects those elements to provide a foundation for Sunday’s match.

Pirates will therefore attempt to turn the encouraging aspects of that second-half display into a winning performance against Chippa United, while ensuring their players have the fresh legs and clear minds Ouaddou considers essential.

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