Abdeslam Ouaddou makes worrying admission about key position

Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has made an honest admission about the lack of recognized right-backs in the Bucs camp, with the club solely relying on Kamogelo Sebelebele on the right side of the defence.

The defending Betway Premiership champions parted ways with Thabiso Lebitso and Siyabonga Ndlozi during the off-season, while Tshepo Mashiloane returned to Sekhukhune United on a season-long loan, with Deano van Rooyen also severing ties with the club via mutual agreement last month.

Sebelebele, as a result, has made nine appearances across all competitions thus far this season, as he only missed the first leg of the CAF Champions League clash against Mauritian champions La Cure Waves SC.

When quizzed on whether having the 24-year-old Bafana international as the sole option at right-back is a major concern ahead of the fixture congestion, Ouaddou echoed the sentiments, admitting his squad is thin at right full-back, despite possessing stop-gap covers.

“You're right, it's a big concern. Sebelebele, even though I love him, I cannot push him for 60 games, he's not a robot. I can find sometimes some solutions, some emergency will, you know when your car is stuck,” said the Pirates boss.

"But the emergency will won't work every time, especially the way that we want to play. If we want to propose some attacking football using the wide channels, we can use central defenders in one or two games, but in the important games definitely we will need somebody who is confirmed in that position.

"I can of course use [Ghampani] Lungu, but actually Lungu is coming back from injury, and the solutions start to be limited.

Pirates, meanwhile, swing back to action with a Betway Premiership clash against a stubborn Durban City side at the Orlando Amstel Arena on Thursday, with the Sea Robbers looking to narrow the gap on log leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, who played three games more.

Hlayisani Magoro

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Football journalist from South Africa covering African football news, exclusive stories and key events while sharing insights with passionate fans of the game.

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