Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has applauded his team for pushing Mamelodi Sundowns to the last few days of the season, comparing the title race to the English Premier League.
Pirates surpassed their 61-point record last night, beating Stellenbosch FC to get to 62 points with three games remaining.
But despite breaking their record of the most points in a PSL campaign, the Sea Robbers remain in second place, two points behind Mamelodi Sundowns.
Pirates have a better goal difference than Sundowns but they need to win all their remaining games and hope Masandawana will drop points in their final three outings – their first being against Kaizer Chiefs on Wednesday.
Ouaddou explained that they did well to at least bring competition to the league, comparing the title race between Pirates and Sundowns to Arsenal and Manchester City.
“In every league, in every country, if you can look at the Premier League in England, Manchester City and Arsenal are fighting, I think it’s the same fight that we are seeing in South Africa,” Ouaddou told the media.
“It creates a lot of interest for South African fans, it’s not funny when you see a team in 10 games before the end of the season, you see the team is winning the league.
“So, for you as a fan, if you know at the beginning of this season who is going to be champion, you lose interest.
“So, this season, we try to bring more competitiveness. I think the boys really did well. Let’s see what the result will be at the end of this season. But the most important thing is to give this competitiveness to the PSL until the end.”
‘The Dream Is Alive’
Ouaddou also insisted that his side will give their all until the final match of the 2025/26 campaign.
“And I think it was really a good test today for us because you don’t know what will happen in the next few matches against the rival. So, for us, the dream is still here,” he continued.
“The players are going to fight, and it’s possible, like I said at the beginning of the season, it’s possible to fight until the last game, and maybe people will know the champions on the last day.”
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