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By Tshepo Ntsoelengoe

Football Journalist


Pirates are not chasing January signings

'Lepasa, Lorch and Pule are our starting front-three and it's clear that we're missing them,' said Pirates co-head coach Fadlu Davids.


With the January transfer window approaching, one might have thought Orlando Pirates would be targetting new signings to strengthen their ailing squad, which is hit by injuries, but it seems like it won’t be the case.

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Pirates co-coach Fadlu Davids believes the Buccaneers have enough depth in their squad, and it is just a matter of their key players returning from injuries, while some are back to full training and are just working on match fitness.

“I think this transfer window we’ll get some great signings but that will be internally, if you take Vincent Pule being back , Thembinkosi Lorch being back and Zakhele Lepasa being back or Richard Ofori being back (from injuries). Let’s be honest, Lepasa, Lorch and Pule are our starting front-three and it’s clear that we’re missing them,” the Pirates coach admitted.

“So that’s the boost we will get in January, with all our main players coming back. Innocent Maela is also back – he is a starting line-up player who is just getting his fitness back and passing his minimal requirements. He got some minutes in the away leg in the Caf Confederation Cup (the first leg of their play-off against LPRC Oilers). So more than us needing to strengthen in areas, we will soon be back to full-strength and especially up front.”

With some of these players back training with the full squad, Davids will have had more time to try and work on getting them back to their best, having not had to play their second leg tie with Oilers last Sunday after the Liberian outfit withdrew from the tournament, with Bucs having won the first leg 2-0.

That granted the Soweto giants a safe passage to the group stages of the continental tournament, which is set to resume next year. Now, the full focus will be on the DStv Premiership campaign, where they travel to Durban for a meeting with AmaZulu FC tomorrow.

Bucs will go into this clash with a three-games unbeaten run in the league, having played out two draws and one win. They will be eager to get maximum points this time around, especially after their disappointing draw with Baroka FC in their last match.

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