Ouaddou balances pride and pressure

ORLANDO Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has admitted that the club must manage a difficult situation as eight of his players depart for international duty just two weeks before the MTN8 final.

- SMISO MSOMI

The Buccaneers, who are preparing to face Stellenbosch on 13 September, will be without seven players called up by Bafana Bafana, while Abdoulaye Mariko has joined up with Guinea-Bissau. It leaves Ouaddou and his technical staff with a reduced squad during what should have been a vital period of preparation for the season’s first piece of silverware.

By contrast, Stellenbosch coach Steve Barker has a full complement of players to work with. Stellies have no representatives in national-team camps, allowing them an uninterrupted fortnight to refine their approach before the final.

Ouaddou, however, remained philosophical about the challenge.

“We are Orlando Pirates, a very big club and of course with international players and I’m happy for them,” he said.