Former Bafana Bafana players Fabian McCarthy and Vuyo Mere say new Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou needs to win the dressing room if he is to prosper this season.
They say the culture left by Ouaddou’s predecessor, Jose Riveiro will not change completely as the Buccaneers still have most of the players from the previous tenure.
Ouaddou had to make the players trust his systems and philosophy, MTN8 legends Mere and McCarthy said.
For that to happen, the Moroccan must not be compared with Riveiro.
Though Ouaddou has had the experience of playing in England, France, Greece and Qatar, his coaching pedigree is still thin when it comes to coaching in the Premier Soccer League, having coached only Marumo Gallants.
Mentoring the Bucs came with pressure, but Ouaddou was capable of handling the heat, Mere and McCarthy said.
They likened his story to Riveiro’s.
The Spanish mentor arrived at Pirates as a relatively unknown factor in 2022 despite having been the head coach of Finland’s Inter Turku.
Riveiro recently departed for Egypt’s Al Ahly after his three years in Johannesburg landed two Nedbank Cups and three MTN8 titles.
“At Pirates before Riveiro’s successful stint, everyone was comparing every coach to Ruud Krol, who basically won them trebles.
“But now some of the Pirates fans consider Riveiro as Pirates’ top coach, right up there with Krol,” Mere said during their MTN8 media roadshow in East London.
“The new coach must be given time as well and the public must be patient with him.
“Coaches have different ideologies.
“His might not quickly click at Pirates.
“It might take him a season to settle, so there must not be quick judging.”
The Moroccan showed glimpses of his doctrine as they made it past the MTN8 quarterfinal by beating Polokwane City 2-0.
They will now face Mamelodi Sundowns in the semifinals on their way to potentially winning the MTN8 crown for the fourth consecutive time.
McCarthy predicted that the Downs-Sea Robbers game would be a hard-fought encounter, but gave it to the men from Mamelodi to seal the deal over the two legs.
Despite this, he said Pirates still had the quality from last season.
Though it is still early days, he said he was impressed with how new signings seemed to have gelled within the group.
Ouaddou has provided his six new players, Sipho Mbule, Sihle Nduli, Oswin Appollis, Yanela Mbuthuma, Tshepang Moremi, and Abdouaye Mariko, game time in the MTN8 and league.
“If you look at Sipho Mbule, it seems he has already adapted well to the team and is performing admirably,” McCarthy said.
“Same as with Appollis. In that quarterfinal he had confidence and even scored a goal in his first official game with the Bucs.”
Daily Dispatch
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