"The game won't be easy because we're playing the first leg away against a very good team of Sekhukhune United," said Ouaddou.
Abdeslam Ouaddou during the 2026 MTN8 Semi Final1st Leg Orlando Pirates FC Press Conference in Johannesburg on Thursday. Photo: Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix
As Orlando Pirates continue their title defence with a clash against Sekhukhune United this coming weekend, head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has warned his charges to play the tie smartly if they are to overcome ‘difficult’ Babina Noko.
The Buccaneers will meet Sekhukhune in the first leg of the MTN8 semifinal at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium on Saturday (kick-off is at 3pm).
Speaking to the media in Fairland, Johannesburg yesterday, ahead of the game in Polokwane, Ouaddou said he was expecting another tough match against the Babina Noko outfit that has always given the Buccaneers problems whenever the teams play.
“The game won’t be easy because we’re playing the first leg away against a very good team of Sekhukhune United. I think if we take the history of our games between Orlando Pirates and Sekhukhune, they’re always difficult, especially now that we’re going to play on a small pitch,” said Ouaddou.
Pirates want to keep MTN8 title
Having won the MTN8 for the past four consecutive seasons, Ouaddou said Pirates want to keep their title for the fifth season in a row.
“For us we want to keep this title and we know that we have two games [against Sekhukhune United], we just want to focus on the MTN8 now, we’ll have time to focus on the league games [later]. Step by step we want to go there and get the result with a lot of ambition.
“At the same time, it’s a game that you have to play very cleverly when you play two games like that. We need to be very smart because we still have another game at home.”
The small Old Peter Mokaba Stadium pitch has proved to be a problematic pitch for teams like Pirates who enjoy playing in wide pitches. Ouaddou, however, says they know what to do in order to overcome the pitch challenge.
“I think you know that when teams take us to pitches like this, it means they have planned what they need to do against us. But for us, we took a lot of experience from last season, having played in this kind of pitch. The game will be quite different [from last season] because the spaces are different and we have to keep up our principles. No need to be reckless, we need to be compact in that kind of pitch. More than that, it’s a cup game and I’m expecting a very strong team spirit from my team,” concluded Ouaddou.
