Time to give Abdeslam Ouaddou his flowers, win or lose the title for Pirates

Abdeslam Ouaddou has taken Orlando Pirates to the brink of unseating eight-time successive champions Mamelodi Sundowns for the Betway Premiership title, and still, perhaps, the Moroccan is not entirely appreciated for that mammoth undertaking.

It’s time to give the 47-year-old former Fulham, Rennes and Olympiacos and 53-cap Atlas Lions defender or midfielder his due. Win or lose the title in the coming remaining 11 days of one of the most engrossing, thrilling Premiership races of swinging fortunes with Downs, he has produced a major achievement taking such a winning machine so close.

As it stands, Pirates are favourites to clinch or lift the trophy on May 23 or perhaps, given it is mathematically possible, even as early as this weekend.

Given the twisting, turning rollercoaster ride the battle with Downs and conquests and cessations of the ownership of the number one spot of the past few weeks has been, it’s still by no means guaranteed, though Bucs’ superior goal difference does seem to favour them.

The maths of the schedule are:

• Pirates (65 points from 28 games, +44 goal difference), after Saturday’s fired-up, professional under-pressure 3-0 win against Magesi FC in Polokwane, are three points behind Sundowns.
• Downs (68 points from 29 games, +37 goal difference) went for a goals and a big win to try to rein in the difference margin, but ended up conceding too in their madcap 7-4 victory against Siwelele FC in Atteridgeville. They have to beat TS Galaxy at Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday (7.30pm) to realistically stay in the race. That would take the Brazilians to 71 points.
• That result would leave Bucs needing to win their last two games to draw level on 71 points and clinch the title on goal difference.
• Sundowns finish earlier than the other teams to compete in the two-legged Caf Champions League final against AS FAR on Sunday (home) and May 23 (away).
• Pirates’ last two Premiership fixtures are against Durban City at Orlando Stadium on Saturday and Orbit College at Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg on May 23 (both 3pm).

Ouaddou arrived at Pirates amid great scepticism, verging on howls of derision from many Bucs fans.

Spanish predecessor Jose Riveiro had achieved great popularity at Orlando Stadium winning five domestic cup trophies (Bucs had won one in seven sevens before that) and steering the Soweto giants to runners-up to current league emperors Downs in all three of his seasons. Those second places came by 16, 23 and 12-point margins, though, before Riveiro left for a brief and unsuccessful spell at Cairo’s Al Ahly a few matches before the end of his third campaign.

Ouaddou was almost unknown in South African football when he took over. Bucs, though, had seen his potential in Marumo Gallants playing some stirring football and escaping relegation in 2024-25. Yet there were signs from the beginning, for anyone digging deeper into his playing club and international pedigree and formation of his philosophy from playing under coaches like Jean Tigana, and as a coach as assistant to Djamel Belmadi with Algeria, his appointment might prove another masterstroke. A player’s coach, who, having played at the top level, knows how to manage his squad as individuals.

He had to hit the ground running to win the Bucs fans over, playing almost the entire season under scrutiny and pressure — from some quarters even as Pirates mounted the most convincing challenge to Downs’ hegemony in the league in a half-decade. Also, even as Ouaddou, somewhat remarkably, quickly continued Riveiro’s cup trophy run in the MTN8 and Carling Knockout.

Some of Ouaddou’s success might have been built on the release of pressure Riveiro brought racking up trophies. But so was Riveiro’s built on the competitive outfits that preceded him under Milutin Sredojevic, Rulani Mokwena, Josef Zinnbauer and Fadlu Davids co-coaching with Mandla Ncikazi, who were all unlucky not to bring more silverware.

Ouaddou deserves credit because he has challenged Sundowns with a far more constrained budget, using many young, less experienced though hungry South Africans.

While Portuguese coach Miguel Cardoso’s Brazilians, after battling by their standards in the opening half of the campaign, opened the wallet to beef up with midfield countryman Nuno Santos and especially Colombian striker Brayan León in January, Ouaddou lost perhaps his best player in 19-year-old centreback prospect Mbekezeli Mbokazi to Chicago Fire.

He has, in most respects, out-performed Riveiro, given the excellent league race. He deserves his flowers for that.

Now he will aim for Bucs to finish the job by winning their last two games (one victory is needed if Galaxy shock Sundowns on Tuesday). A young team can choke in such circumstances. The performance against Magesi indicated Bucs have the will to avoid that.

We are focused on how we want to play and how we want to be organised. You can see a strong Pirates — we don’t concede goals, we score goals. We don’t expect anything from anybody

“It was important to score early because against these kinds of teams if you don’t score early sometimes it can be difficult to find space behind them. But the guys did the job. I’m very proud of them,” Ouaddou said.

“We keep building and going forward. I told you [the media] at the beginning of the season that maybe the title would be decided at the end of the season and it’s the case. But Orlando Pirates are doing well.

“We are going to prepare for the next game with a lot of seriousness because it’s a very important game in front of our fans. Our two last games will be important for us.”

He said Pirates have kept their focus internal amid the swinging fortunes of the final, heady weeks of the race with Sundowns.

“We are focused on ourselves. The destiny is between our feet. We are focused on how we want to play and how we want to be organised. You can see a strong Pirates — we don’t concede goals, we score goals. We don’t expect anything from anybody.

“We are focused on our team, we are really confident in how we want to play, we feel strong. And we’ll give everything.”

Few will bet against Sundowns failing to beat Galaxy. Then the country will watch with bated breath to see if the young Bucs do what they need to so they can lift the club’s first league title since 2012.

Perhaps lost a little in the excitement of the thrilling finale is that if Bucs take the league, they will win a treble, putting themselves close to the bracket of the famed side that did that back-to-back in 2010-11 and 2011-12.

If they do that, Ouaddou and his side will join the ranks of Buccaneers legends.