Orlando Pirates continued their Spanish pre-season with a 2-1 loss to Saudi Arabian giants Al Ittihad.
Pirates came into this game on the back of a 2-1 win over Cadiz, and a 1-1 draw with Cordoba CF.
The 14-time Saudi Pro League champions took the lead in the 14th minute through Moroccan striker Youssef En-Nesyri.
The Buccaneers equalised through a powerful shot by Bafana midfielder Thalente Mbatha in the 27th minute.
The Sea Robbers continued to fight and had a second goal ruled out due to offside, while Saudi side remained calm and rotated the ball nicely.
Just before the break, Al Ittihad got rewarded for their persistence through Moussa Diaby, who netted in first-half injury time..
Al-Ittihad continued where they left off in the second half, looking for that third goal to double their advantage.
After an hour, Sipho Chaine managed to pull an important save to deny Ittihad from a long range shot keeping the score at 2-1.
The tempo from the Buccaneers dropped after making several second-half changes with 20 minutes remaining in the match.
George Ilenikhena made it 3-1 for Ittihad after 85 minutes to seal the win for the Saudi Pro League giants, however, Pirates managed to half the deficit with the last touch of the game through Yanela Mbuthuma.
Pirates are back in action on Wednesday, when they will face Las Palmas.