"Everybody who understands football, who knows football, can see fantastic quality in Tito [Patrick Maswanganyi]," said Ouaddou.
Patrick Maswanganyi of Orlando Pirates takes a shot at goal during the Betway Premiership match against Chippa United at Hollywoodbets Kings Park Stadium in Durban o Sunday. Photo: Gerhard Duraan/Gallo Images
Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou says Patrick Maswanganyi has a very big role to play for the Buccaneers following Relebohile Mofokeng’s departure.
Mofokeng left the Buccaneers to join Belgian outfit Union Saint-Gilloise during the offseason, and with him having carried the team over the last couple of seasons, many thought Pirates would struggle without him this season.
However, speaking after his side’s 3-0 victory over Chippa United this past weekend, Ouaddou said “Tito” can help Pirates this campaign.
“Everybody who understands football, who knows football, can see fantastic quality in Tito [Patrick Maswanganyi],” Ouaddou told the media at Kings Park Stadium on Sunday.
“As long as he brings the game in his favour, to play forward, it’s what we have been saying to him, to bring the game forward. You see that he can help the team and be the real link between the defenders and the strikers.
“Not only that, he’s able to feed in the last third, but he’s somebody who can score as well. So, I think he has a lot of talent; he knows. We sit with him, we talk a lot about which area he needs to occupy, which he must occupy to be more efficient,” continued Ouaddou.
‘He’s a clever boy’
“We did a lot of video sessions with him as well. And he’s a clever boy; he’s a clever boy. He knows exactly what we’re expecting from him, and he showed it today [Sunday].
“Again, I hope we will have this consistency because he’s a key player for Pirates, definitely. And like you said, truly, with the departure of Rele, he has a big space there to play and a very big role to play for our club.”
Ouaddou claps back at critics
Meanwhile, Ouaddou has hit back at critics who criticized him for how he addressed his players after their previous match.
This comes after the Moroccan slammed his players for their performance in the 1-1 draw against AmaZulu on Wednesday.
“I think my boys gave me a great response today. You know when a father or big brother is shouting in the dressing room, who knows better than me the psychology of my players.
“So, people talk too much to say the coach cannot talk like that in the media. I’m expecting an answer, and sometimes you need to be a little bit hard with your boys to have this kind of performance,” concluded Ouaddou.
