Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has issued a reality check to talented midfielder Cemran Dansin despite his Match-of-the-Match performance in the Betway Premiership opener against Milford FC.
The Buccaneers beat Premiership newcomers Milford 2-0 at the sold-out Orlando Amstel Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Pirates found the back of the net in each half from Oswin Appollis and Tshepang Moremi to collect maximum points in the first league match of the campaign.
The Soweto giants opened the scoring in the 24th minute with a free kick from Bafana Bafana star Appollis after Yanela Mbuthuma was fouled just outside the box.
Pirates doubled their lead in the 85th minute with a well-worked goal from Moremi, who burst out with pace to round the Milford goalkeeper before converting his low shot into the empty net.
In a victory over Milford, Dansin was one of the best performers for Pirates after walking away with the Man of the Match award.
The SA youth international dictated the tempo of the match in the middle of the park with his ball-playing abilities and an eye for a forward pass.
WHAT OUADDOU SAID ABOUT CEMRAN DANSIN
After the 21-year-old’s standout performance, Ouaddou urged the media and the public to refrain from showering Dansin with praise. The Moroccan coach stated that the promising midfielder still has a lot of work to do before getting to the highest level.
“We have to be careful [with Dansin] because I’ve been in the football business for a while; the boy is doing well,” Ouaddou said.
“We took time to bring this talent; if you remember last season, I didn’t hesitate to put him in the big game against Mamelodi Sundowns, and he got a fantastic goal.
“He was with us for most of the games; we have detected the talent, but you don’t have to burn this talent. That’s why people didn’t understand why we had to bring him step by step. We knew what we were doing, and I want to be very cautious about the media, about us not putting this boy under pressure because his career is long, he’s doing well, and we will give him all our trust and help to bring him to the high level.”
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