Football agent Mike Makaab has addressed Boitumelo Radiopane’s situation at Orlando Pirates, speaking on the striker’s status after his absence from recent action.
Radiopane started the season as the preferred choice in the striking position under Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou, who took over the coaching job in the off-season.
In the opening matches of the 2025/26 season, Radiopane featured in four matches across all competitions and registered one assist. His subsequent failure to impress when given game time has seen the striker slip considerably down the team’s pecking order.
The former SA junior international last featured for Pirates against Mamelodi Sundowns in the MTN8 first-leg at Orlando Stadium on the 16th of August.
Since then, the talented striker has been missing from the match squad with Evidence Makgopa and Yanela Mbuthuma sharing the responsibilities upfront, while Tshegofatso Mabasa has been in and out of the team.
Radiopane came through the Pirates DStv Diski Challenge side and gained promotion to the senior team in 2021 after scoring goals for fun in the reserve league.
WHAT MAKAAB SAID BOITUMELO RADIOPANE’S SITUATION AT PIRATES
After being promoted to the first team, the 23-year-old went out on loan to Cape Town Spurs to gain experience in order to compete for a place at the Soweto giants upon his return. Radiopane returned from a two-season loan spell with Spurs at the start of the previous campaign, featuring in 15 matches. He netted a single goal.
With Radiopane absent from the matchday squad, several media reports have surfaced suggesting the forward could go on loan in the upcoming transfer window. However, his agent, Mike Makaab, has set the record straight, stating that Radiopane recently recovered from injury and is in the Pirates’ technical team’s plans.
“Boitumelo Radiopane, unfortunately, got an injury a few weeks ago. He recently completed his rehabilitation and joined the team for full training,” Makaab told FARPost.
“You need to understand that Pirates is going to have a long season with a lot of games, so it’s the injury that kept him out; no discussions are happening around his future. As I said, he suffered an injury, and he is in the plans of the team, and surely he will compete for his place in the starting line-up.”
RELATED STORY: Mike Makaab speaks on Pirates striker Radiopane’s future after CT Spurs’ demise