Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has opened up on the intelligence gathered on little-known Lioli FC ahead of their CAF Champions League first preliminary round match at the Free State Stadium on Saturday.
After reaching the semi-finals of last season’s premier continental competition, the Buccaneers are bidding to be crowned champions for the first time since 1995.
They begin this term’s campaign with a clash against Lesotho side of Lioli, whose name is not much known in African football. It is also Ouaddou’s first time leading a team in the Champions League, pushing to get past where his predecessor Jose Riveiro reached last season.
The Moroccan coach says they have spied enough to plot against Saturday’s opponents, who are the champions from Lesotho. The firs leg tie is set to start at 15:00 in Bloemfontein.
“Of course, it’s an important game and we take it very seriously. We are prepared for them, my players are ready,” Ouaddou said.
“It’s a team that we have information [about], we have studied. We know their weaknesses and their strengths, and we are definitely ready to play the game. We are going to play the game with a lot of ambition.”
THE SEASON TAKING SHAPE FOR ORLANDO PIRATES
After starting their Betway Premiership season by losing two matches to Sekhukhune United and Marumo Gallants, the Soweto giants have picked themselves up. Their recovery has been timely, especially as they head into the Champions League. They face Lioli smart from clinching the MTN8 title for the fourth successive season after beating a stubborn Stellenbosch FC side 3-0 last Saturday.
“Our season started a while ago now, and I think I have to congratulate my boys for the fourth [MTN8] title they won,” added the former Fulham centre-back Ouaddou.
“They did it four times in a row, and it’s historical, but now we have to turn the page. The strength of a big club, the strength of a champion, lies in focusing on the next game.
“It’s football, even if you watched the first two games, of course, the results were not good, but as a tactician, I’m looking for the contents, and they were very interesting, and now it’s the continuation of the work that we have been doing, the focus of the players, the ambition of the players.
“Step by step, we try to be more precise in what I’m asking. It’s now two months since I have been working with the team, and like what I said, I’m not here to change everything.”
Free State Stadium is familiar territory for Ouaddou, who was with Gallants last season and would likely be feeling at home in Mangaung.
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