Pirates boss admits strategic mistake after ‘good penalty kicker’ was benched against Lupopo

Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou admits that he could have made a mistake when it came to selecting his penalty takers against St Eloi Lupopo.

Pirates were eliminated from the CAF Champions League at the preliminary round following a post-match penalty shoutout loss to DR Congo side Lupopo at Orlando Stadium on Saturday.

The Buccaneers had lost 3-0 away in the first leg but fought back in the return match to win 3-0 and tied it 3-3 on aggregate, leading to the shootouts.

However, they were undone on penalties when Deon Hotto and Yanela Mbuthuma missed their kicks but they had a better penalty taker on the bench in striker Tshegofatso Mabasa, who was not involved in the match.

Did Pirates coach make a tactical blunder

Ouaddou says he selected his penalty takers based on how they had performed in training but admits Mabasa would have given them a better chance had he introduced him just before the shootouts.

“During the week, we work the penalties with the players because it’s maybe a possibility to play the penalties if you score three goals,” said Ouaddou as quoted by iDiski Times.

“So, we defined the list regarding all the players who’ve been successful during the past weeks, and we have a list of the guys. And when I told you that, maybe we could have been more strategic bringing just before the end of the game, bringing Mabasa, because he’s a very good kicker of penalty but we have a list.”

Mabasa was among the surprise omissions from the starting lineup with Evidence Makgopa and Thalenthe Mbatha’s exclusion from the matchday squad the other tactical decisions from Ouaddou that raised eyebrows.