Orlando Pirates captain Nkosinathi Sibisi has opened up on their Betway Premiership chances, cautioning against becoming overly fixated on winning the league title.
The Sea Robbers are kicking off their league season with a tough encounter against Sekhukhune United at Orlando Stadium on Saturday.
Pirates are aiming to have a dream start to the season as they will once again attempt to dethrone Mamelodi Sundowns, who have won the title in the last eight seasons in a row. In the past three seasons, Pirates have been finishing as runners-up to the Tshwane giants on the league table.
Last season, the Soweto giants had a promising start to the campaign after winning their seven opening matches in the league; however, a run of inconsistent results as the season progressed saw the wheels fall off, and they missed out on the league championship yet again.
In a bid to keep up with Sundowns, Pirates have gone into the transfer market to sign quality players for the 2025/26 season.
The Ghosts made marquee signings, including Sipho Mbule, Oswin Appollis, Sihle Nduli, and Tshepang Moremi. In addition, Pirates have also made coaching changes with the appointment of Abdeslam Ouaddou to replace Jose Riveiro.
WHAT SIBISI SAID ABOUT PIRATES’ TITLE CHANCES
Ouaddou will be eager to deliver the league title for Pirates for the first time since 2012. The club captain, Sibisi, says they have to take it one game at a time and not be ‘obsessed’ with winning the league.
“For us, the league title is in the back of our heads, but we don’t want to overwhelm ourselves by being far ahead,” Sibisi said.
“We know the league only starts on Saturday against Sekhukhune, so that’s where it all starts, and if we set a good tone from there, I think anything is possible.
“I think for us is just to keep the focus, try not to overwhelm ourselves with the title, and just take it one game at a time.
“Like I said, we don’t want to overwhelm ourselves by being obsessed with the league title; we just want to look at where we fell short last season. I think with the quality that we have right now, we can go all the way.”
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