Orlando Pirates News Today: Bucs backed for CAF glory, new signings blasted & more

Orlando Pirates news, including a club legend tipping the Buccaneers to chase down Mamelodi Sundowns in Africa, Mpumi Khoza’s dressing-down of the technical staff and Andries Sebola’s unimpressed take on pre-season.

Chikoya backs Bucs to close the gap on Downs

Former Orlando Pirates winger Innocent Chikoya believes the club’s recruitment this winter has struck the right balance between experience and youth, and that the Soweto giants are now equipped to go toe to toe with Mamelodi Sundowns on the continent, according to Goal.

Speaking to Soccer Laduma, the Zimbabwean-born former Buccaneer said he approves of the club’s current recruitment model, which has paired proven senior professionals with academy graduates rather than leaning on one or the other.

Chikoya framed the CAF Champions League as the measuring stick. Pirates were the first South African side to win the competition back in 1995, but Sundowns have been the more consistent continental force in the modern era and now carry two stars above their badge.

“Right now, we’ve got pressure because Mamelodi Sundowns have got two stars above their badge. It’s telling us that we need to put another star on our shirt as well. Yes, we must defend all our trophies and do even more than that, so that we do better than last season,” he said.

Khoza blasts staff over ‘Pirates is just a name’ remark

Orlando Pirates director of football Mpumi Khoza laid into the club’s technical department behind closed doors after last season’s goalless draw with Durban City, with footage of the meeting surfacing in the fourth episode of the club’s documentary series, Bucs Camp: We Fight Till The End.

The trigger was a post-match television interview in which Durban City midfielder Siphamandla Ncanana suggested that Pirates were nothing more than a name. Khoza’s anger, though, was pointed inwards rather than at the opposition player.

Addressing a management meeting, the director of football questioned why the same tactical problems kept resurfacing without consequence, and why a side generating that volume of chances was creating so few genuinely clear ones.

Sebola not convinced by pre-season or new faces

Not everyone is sold on the transfer business, however. Former Pirates striker Andries Sebola told KickOff that he came away from the club’s training camp in Marbella distinctly underwhelmed.

Pirates have played four matches in Spain, winning two, drawing one and losing two.

“At this stage, I am not fully convinced, as the team has yet to sign effective strikers. Securing Peter Shalulile could be beneficial. Additionally, in midfield, Dansin does not seem to fulfill the role of a playmaker. The loss of Mofokeng poses a significant challenge for this season, unless Maswanganyi steps into the breach,” he commented.