Ouaddou ready to make former side Gallants pay for Sekhukhune’s PSL ‘sin’

Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou started his Premier Soccer League journey with the club on a poor note as his team fell 1-0 against Sekhukhune United on Saturday at the Orlando Stadium.

It was not an anticipated result, especially after beating Polokwane City 2-0 a week before in the MTN8 quarter-final. Against Babina Noko, the Sea Robbers struggled to breach the opponents’ defense, running short of ideas in the final third.

On Tuesday, Pirates play Ouaddou’s former team Marumo Gallants, at the Dr Molemela Stadium. They started the 2025/26 campaign with a 2-1 win over Richards Bay, and will be aiming at causing an upset against the Sea Robbers.

The Buccaneers to rotate their squad?

The former Morocco international concedes it will be vital for his team to ensure they get a vital win away. He has seemingly conceded that losing against Babina Noko at home was a massive blunder.

“I saw the result [of Gallants defeating Richards], congratulations to them. This game is not only important for me, but it is also important for our team. We definitely want to go there and get a result because when you lose your first game at home, you need to get points away to still stay in the race,” Ouaddou told the media.

He has further explained why depth is important for Bucs, who are competing domestically and abroad. “We knew from the beginning that we would have very close games in our schedule. We need to see which players are available, like I told you, we have a lot of players. Maybe the rotation will be interesting when you have so many games in a short time,” he concluded.