"My job is not to look for excuses," said Ouaddou.
Relebohile Mofokeng has joined Union Saint-Gilloise from Orlando Pirates. Photo: Kurt Desplenter/Belga/Shutterstock
Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has opened up about the difficult process of rebuilding his team after losing star players Relebohile Mofokeng and Patrick Maswanganyi during the current transfer window.
Mofokeng and Maswanganyi, who have been key players in Ouaddou’s side and helped Pirates win the treble last season, have joined Belgian Pro League side Royale Union Saint-Gilloise and Bahrain Premier League side Alkhaldiya Sports Club respectively.
Speaking after his side’s 3-0 win over Sekhukhune United in the second leg of the MTN8 semifinal at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday, Ouaddou admitted that it has been difficult for him to replace his influential players.
“We had very good profiles with Mofokeng, with Tito (Patrick Maswanganyi) and for a coach it’s not easy to lose these kind of profiles but it’s life, it’s the life of football, like I said I wish them all the best but now the life of the club must move on,” Ouaddou told reporters in Orlando.
“We have to use the profiles to find a system that is suitable. And we wanted to play fast with intensity, with these new profiles, but the most important for me is how we can limit touches in crowded areas where there is lots of pressure.
“We need to train them to take and make decisions before receiving the ball, for me that’s the challenge, to reduce touches in the crowded areas and I think they did it very well today,” he added.
‘My job is not to look for excuses’
Despite the difficulties he is facing at Pirates, Ouaddou insists that his primary responsibility is to deliver results and not make excuses.
“My job is not to look for excuses, it’s to build, to find solutions and to keep bringing success and to win.
“Some people are a little hard because they don’t understand the process when you lose five or six players, regular players and then you have to rebuild, I’m not a magician, it takes some time, and some are not patient. But we’re seeing the fruit of the work, with youth we need to be patient as well. I was happy with the performance today.”
Following the MTN8 victory over Sekhukhune, Pirates will now change their focus to Tuesday’s Betway Premiership clash against Kruger United at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit (kick-off is at 7.30pm).
