Mlambo praises Pirates’ fighting spirit

Orlando Pirates midfielder Xolani Mlambo was pleased with Bucs' fighting spirit in their win over Chippa United on Wednesday night.


The Buccaneers edged the Chilli Boys 1-0 at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

Pirates had to survive a Chippa onslaught after they were reduced to 1 men 20 minutes before the end of the match after Mthokozisi Dube got a red card.

And Mlambo, who was named Man of the Match, praised his team for its resilience.

“It was a heavy week to be honest, we played against two good teams in a short space of time. We had to travel to PE, the weather is not as good as it is in Jo’burg,” Mlambo told SuperSport TV after the match.

“So we had to acclimatize quickly, it wasn’t an easy game they kept coming at us it became difficult when we got the red card but I’m glad my boys managed to pull through. This is an accolade to the whole team. I don’t deserve it alone, if it wasn’t for them we wouldn’t be victorious today (Wednesday),” he added.

Mlambo also credited his teammates for making perform well in this match.

“Mpho Makola it was his first game [of the season], he gave us a good game. He kept us on the run and helped us to defend. Musa (Nyatama) as well, he’s a senior player, he’s managing the game well. Our defence, captain Happy (Jele) they make everything easy for me in the middle of the park. They’re giving me all the credit but to be obvious I think this award deserves to go to the team.

“To manage to come out with the three points here in PE playing with a man short is not an easy fight and they pulled through today. It’s an award to the technical team, the substitutions they made were spot on,” Mlambo concluded.

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