Ouaddou Hails Youngsters After Las Palmas Win
Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has praised the club’s young players, saying they have responded exceptionally well during preseason and insisting the Buccaneers have a bright future with the talented youngsters coming through the ranks.
Pirates have one match remaining on their preseason tour of Spain as they continue preparations for the 2026/27 campaign.
The Soweto giants have enjoyed a productive tour, recording two wins, one draw and one defeat so far. Their latest success came with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Las Palmas on Wednesday.
Against Las Palmas, Ouaddou showed great faith in the club’s young talent by naming several youngsters in his starting lineup.
The Buccaneers have continued their commitment to developing young players, a philosophy that gathered momentum under former coach Jose Riveiro.
During his tenure, players such as Relebohile Mofokeng and Mbekezeli Mbokazi established themselves in the first team before earning moves abroad.
“I’m very happy with the preparations of the boys, and today [Wednesday] was a top performance,” said Ouaddou.
“We gave an opportunity to some young players. I’m very happy because it was the most important thing to do. This is the youngest team I could have fielded during this camp. They are responding well in terms of aggressiveness and tactical organisation. Technically, they were very clever. I think Orlando Pirates have a bright future with these young players.”
The Soweto giants will conclude their preseason tour with a final friendly against Neom FC before returning to South Africa to put the finishing touches on their preparations for the new season.
Ouaddou has made it clear that he wants to end the tour on a high, describing the clash against Neom as an opportunity to make amends for their defeat to Al-Ittihad earlier in the week.
“We still have one game, and it will be a tough one again,” Ouaddou said.
“I think it will be an opportunity to make amends because my team didn’t deserve to lose yesterday [against Al-Ittihad on Tuesday]. Against Neom, we’ll have the chance to respond, and I’ll be happy if we finish this camp with a victory.”
