Marumo Gallants coach Abdeslam Ouaddou reckons that they need to win two more games to stay out of the relegation zone in the Betway Premiership, following their 1-0 loss to Orlando Pirates in the Nedbank Cup semi-finals on Sunday.

Gallants currently sit 12th position in the league table with 26 points from 24 games, three points away from SuperSport United, who occupies the last position.

“We are breathing a little bit because we were on the grill, but we are not safe because you can see that Cape Town City, SuperSport United and all these teams, they are in the same pocket of two or three points and it’s so quick.

“I think we are going to rest, but we’re going to work because we’re not safe. We can breathe a little bit, but next week against Golden Arrows, they are looking for points as well, will not be an easy game with a new coach.

“So, no, we are still focussed on that, and the work is not finished. maybe, what happened with Royal AM now they are out of the competition so all the teams that played against them they take off the points, so I think we need two wins to be safe,” said Ouaddou

The 46-year-old stated that the goal they conceded, which turned out to be the game-winning goal, changed their initial game plan.

“We had two phases of Marumo Gallants; we wanted to be very strong at the beginning because we know that Orlando Pirates have very, very talented players,” he said.

“They can overload in the ball area, especially on the side as well. They bring a lot of numbers in the last third, so the plan was to be strong in the first half and maybe in the second half to open more the game.

“Unfortunately, the goal that we conceded arrived very early, so it completely changed our plan, and we changed our system.”

The Bloemfontein-based side will look to collect three points when they host Golden Arrows at Dr Molemela Stadium on Saturday (15:00)

Article by Kamogelo Ndlovu