Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has explained there is no space for “lazy strikers” in his system, as he needs his strikers to be the first line of defense and “not just put a tent inside the box”.
Buccaneers moved to the top of the log after beating AmaZulu 2-0 on Tuesday, with Yanela Mbuthuma starting the club’s last two games.
When asked why he favors players like Mbuthuma, Ouaddou explained he needs strikers who are mobile and involved in defending and pressing – with his quotes perhaps an explanation why Tshegofatso Mabasa didn’t feature often in his line-ups.
“I like local talent. When you have young local talent you have to give them the opportunity to shine,” he said when asked by iDiski Times about the qualities of Mbuthuma.
“Before looking what’s happening elsewhere, to think the grass is greener in other countries, you have to look at what you have in your country and we have some talent in the country.
“We are using him well, like the other players. We have some talent, Radiopane, Mbuthuma, Makgopa… They are all good players that we can use.
“What I can tell you about Mbuthuma, he is a modern striker. And what I like of him and Makgopa and Radio is the capacity to play as well without the ball.
“Some people think that they’re only here in the box just to score, but this kind of football is finished. When you play, you play very slow, you play in five square minutes…
“This football is finished, you don’t have to dream about that. The modern football, you have to be efficient with the ball, you have to be efficient in the box, you have to be mobile, you have to play with the ball when we find you in the pocket, you have to make runs without the ball.
“When we are pressing, we have to recover the ball together. People try to understand why we are so strong. We are so strong because everybody is working in our team, it’s not only the back-four.
“Mbokazi left, he was one of the best players in the country, but the system is still here because every is still working and the strikers are my first defenders.
“To come back to Mbuthuma, he has the ability and fitness to help us, but not during 20 seconds, but to have five seconds to allow the midfielders and defenders to recover the ball.
“And somebody who cannot do this, who maybe is lazy, he cannot play high level football, he cannot play in my team because the game model is asking a little bit more than staying and putting the tent in the box and waiting for the ball.”
