Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has broken silence on why Relebohile Mofokeng was frozen out of matchday squads earlier this season.
After some appearances from the bench, and seemingly frustrated by loss of form, the 21-year-old was also out of Pirates’ matchday squads for three games in October and early November. His absence was never fully explained amid talk that he was battling fitness issues.
He did not feature for Bafana Bafana in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Zimbabwe and Rwanda in October. South Africa coach Hugo Broos also left Mofokeng out of the team that faced Zambia in an international friendly match in November.
But the player returned in recent weeks a rejuvenated man, including a Man of the Match shift in the Betway Premiership match against Durban City. The winger also grabbed the all-important goal on Saturday as Pirates edged Marumo Gallants 1-0 to bag the Carling Knockout.
It has been an encouraging period for Mofokeng who was included in the Bafana final selection heading to the 2025 AFCON tournament in Morocco.
OUADDOU EXPLAINS MOFOKENG’S SITUATION AT PIRATES
“The president [Mofokeng] is very important for us in our team. I love him, I love his style of play. He is a very good guy, a top human being,” said Ouaddou.
“He is someone who loves football, dreaming about football, twenty-four hours he thinks about football. I cannot say too much about the beginning of the season.
“For me, when you play many games, qualification for the competition in the national team, I think he did not have a lot of time for rest. He only had 10 days or two weeks and the season before he played, maybe 40 or 45 games.
“So, he is he is not a robot. I can understand that he was a bit tired, we gave him some rest, and he came back with very good fitness.
“You can see in the last three, four matches he was part of the success of the team, he get some fantastic assists. You can see the difference between a fit Rele Mofokeng and a tired Rele Mofokeng.
“Rele Mofokeng, even at 70% of his possibilities, he can help the team. I cannot imagine when he is 100%. If he is 100%, the president is someone who can make us win the title.”
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