HOME > NEWS > JULIO LEAL WANTS ORLANDO PIRATES TO INCREASE QUALITY

Julio Leal wants Orlando Pirates to increase quality

Leal – We have to increase quality

Posted: 2011-07-23 18:59

Orlando Pirates coach Julio Leal has praised his players for their performance in the 2011 Vodacom Challenge, but warns they will need to “increase the quality”.

The Buccaneers qualified for the Final courtesy of a 1-0 victory against Kaizer Chiefs on Thursday, but came unstuck against Spurs two days later at Coca-Cola Park, losing 3-0.

The scoreline was harsh on Pirates, who dominated the first half, but squandered a number of chances, including a second half penalty miss by an otherwise outstanding Tlou Segolela.

Leal was happy with the performance, but bemoaned the missed opportunities.

“We proved in the first half we are in the condition to implement our style against a world-class side,” he says. “Before their goal we had four or five good chances, but when the goal came … emotionally we got tired.

“We tried in the first 15 minutes of the second half, but they scored early and then it became very difficult. We got a chance through the penalty, but we missed and then they scored a third.”

Leal says he was happy with the chance to play another match against an “international side like Tottenham”, especially because of the experience it will give the players ahead of their CAF Champions League campaign.

And he says after the next two weeks he will be in a position to further trim his squad to 28 players, which could include a few new signings.

“We will be playing in four or five competitions this season, so we need to further improve the squad. I want to decrease in quantity, but increase in quality,” Leal says.

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Trix: 2011-07-23 19:11

You win some and you lose some...3 games in 5 days is no child's play. Well done boys, i salute you.

Hubhu : 2011-07-23 19:11

He..he..nw u talk abt qaulity one wonders what are u going to say when get walloped by Chiefs. I like 2 remind u that once u start loosing 2 Chiefs then u are as good as gone ask Krol.

Tiba : 2011-07-23 19:22

Mr leal welcome 2 the hot sit of op n stl nw u are nt feeling any prsr

robby : 2011-07-23 19:35

mayambela play KAK if he was that skillful why can't he create chances like Bale.its gud dat i'm no pirates supporter.MY BLOOD IS YELLOW.

soprii : 2011-07-23 19:45

please tell your boss to buy u Mabhudi Khanyeza.And what ar u waiting for in playing Otorugo?he is tall big inteligent and skillfull!

AAA : 2011-07-23 19:46

If this tournament will also be used for trimming the squad (decreasing quantity), I guess "Professor" Mayambela is topping the list.

Brown: 2011-07-23 19:58

Please Elaborate Mr Leal. Is it quality in terms of coaching, trainers, playing personnel or management??

jayem : 2011-07-23 19:59

I agree with the Coach, there is a lot of dead wood in Pirates' squad, management must give the Coach a long rope to hang himself by trimming and identify players for his squad

lordjerry : 2011-07-23 19:59

y is mabena stil wit the team n mayambela mst go period.

Bucselona : 2011-07-23 20:07

From Nelspruit to PE & expect mighty Bucs to beat top team like Totenham? Yes it was possible considering da clear cut chances we created. Spurs were very defensive tactically & we dominated them. Coach offload Mayambela to celtic, malokase & mabena to zebras. Bring back Otorugu as the stage is 2 high 4 Ndulula. At the back we're superfine. We need more attackers! Coach u need only 28 players? Have u considered injuries & suspensions? Ask the philosopher Krol, u wil get all da answers as he lost key players last season. Up the Bucs!

vovo : 2011-07-23 20:08

coach, u got carried away by a win against chiefs and thought u've done ur homework. Think straight pirate is a big team otherwise ur days are numbered.

Lesiba.Lakes : 2011-07-23 20:16

Lordjerry

By the way how old is Mabena and Mayambela? Then who's better than Mabena and Mayambela in the current Pirates team and how old are they? It's important to plan and prepare for the future. I just hope Colonel Khoza does not make past mistakes of allowing Coaches to sign players ciding they are bringing quality to the team. Pirates won treble with the same team and it was no fluke! Two practice matches against Tottenham Hotspurs does not guarantee convincing team evaluation. Leal should prove himself 1st in the MTN-8, before he can be given attention of getting personnels.

Sputlaldinho : 2011-07-23 20:18

Leal is on the right track with his mission 2 take Pirates 2 Vodacom league. He almost did it with Swallows before being fired. But i hope he'll achieve it with Pirates cos he got 3 yrs contract.

mr cool : 2011-07-23 20:21

we don't need anything less than 35 players cause we are unlucky with the injuries u must ask mr krol he will tell u, in january alone we lost TEKO, KLATE, JOSEPHS AND MABALANE while the likes of MHLONGO AND THWALA never even started the season with us so u must be carefull coach we need lots of players especially for the champions league.

Chincha : 2011-07-23 20:21

Why r u obsessed with 'trimming' without checking MOST players? What will happen when we travel distances into Africa? Just try Good combinations! QUALITY IS THERE!

Judah moremedi : 2011-07-23 20:28

Quite amazin dat da coach can talk of quality whn he has otorugu,msowoya let alone mongala. These r da guys we hav seen scoring goals 4 bucs. Otorogu is ur typical target man. Da guy knws hw 2 hold da ball 4 gud finishers like msowoya. Bucs coaches hv neva wantd 2 try dat partnershp. Mongala is not jst ur speedy nd clever winger,da guy has da nack 2 position himself nd get in2 goal scoring positions.

Lesiba.Lakes : 2011-07-23 20:48

I'm sure Leal has forgotten that he has signed for Orlando Pirates FC not some Amazulu and Swallows. The Pirates that Leal signed for, reached finals of all the knockout competitions, winning two and crowned League champions. The very same Club he has joined qualified African Champions League. The very same Club will not accept any achievement less than what the Club achieved last season. The former Head Coach of Pirates before Leal never signed or recommended even a single player to be registered by Pirates in his 3 year stint with the Club but he achieved a lot. So Leal should not think Pirates will allow him to bring Brazillians players who play in Division 5 of Brazillians League as he did at Swallows. Pirates does not tolerate Coaches Agents! Leal must forget! If he need more quality, then sure Pirates will provide. He should just give specification of areas which needs attention. It was dissapointing to note that, Spurs contributed more to our Charity as compared to our local Clubs. Both Pirates and Chiefs scored 3 goals between them which contribute R300k to Charity while Spurs has scored 4 goals which equals R400k to charity. Total contribution to charity by the Vodacom Challenge is R700k as compared to R5m from the now defunct Charity Spectacular. What a disgrace...

Bishop Simon Ntlemo. : 2011-07-23 20:48

Dats right Mr Coach. De-r selective players who shuld be offloaded 4 quality sake. How can a professional player fails 2 pass a ball accurately, so pathetic. OPFC is a big team. Amen...

All psl trophies : 2011-07-23 20:59

Why did youy disturb Kaizer Chiefs Moron.
Last time when I check, FNB MASSACRE fc was of galaxy of stars. consis

All psl trophies : 2011-07-23 21:03

Ke bona Dillo le Ditsikitlano tsa meno this season.
Our Vodacom cup has gone. We will never give these monkeys a chance to play in the finals of this cup.
They did as expected, Nxxa.
F.U.C.KEN monkeys.

Moraka : 2011-07-23 21:18

Mayambela mus b relisd frm ur team, usls player.

All psl trophies : 2011-07-23 21:18

Is it possible to atleast include,Sundowns,Celtics or Ajax CT?
This team is a genuine KAK with its KAK fans like KUKUBRAND aka Nyosi.
We will never give them any chance of playing in the finals.
They are bringing SA football into disrepute.
Jo',moer pirates maan.
How many time do we have to bring back this trophy to SA?

Khosified Brinzo : 2011-07-23 21:39

Musona wud hav scord dat penalty wit no fear, khune wud hav savd those useles goals, anyway beautiful futbal on da 1st half, da boys lost hope afta the 1st goal

Lesiba.Lakes : 2011-07-23 21:51

Some people misuse their priviledge in this platform. We should not subject ourselves to such lower level. I hope no one respond to this level of stupidy that some people are bringing to the forum. Lets continue to paste our constructive comments on the forum and leave stupidity to fools. Otherwise well done to the organizers of the VC, the tournament organisational standard was above many in the World. Thus showing much improvement in our football administration. These are some of the legacy of the FIFA 2010 World Cup. I so wish that some Municipalities in North West and Northern Cape can bid to host some of these matches of international standard be it with the National Team or Clubs tournaments. That the said Municipalities in the said Provinces bids to host some of high profile PSL Knockout competitions. Hosting such events assist in changing the landscape of your Province and public perception about your Province as well as repositioning your Province in the global if not country's tourist arena.

mash-do : 2011-07-23 22:41

'we have to reduce in quantities and increase in quality' Leal....this coach is very honest!..big up mr Leal for telling it like it is!...this team has a lot of useless cows ..we have been telling this pie city idiots that they have galaxy of cows for a long time now!....by the way ndulula is jst another matsau scoring for under23 but not for his team!...mayambela is a clawn, mbuyane is a cow, twala is finished,..mhlongo is a thug, bester is a flop!.. Doutie is playing for the wrong team..... Shame poor rats!....

Tlou 'ka leboga kudukudu' segolela hahahahahahahaha

Legend  : 2011-07-23 22:43

@Zebra Cabbages

Mara oksalayo siyajola noma bethini.
We moerd sum zebra ass n wil do it again nxt weekend in de tshwala cup.

Baroka fc : 2011-07-23 23:20

It's still preseason no need to press panic buttons.

Baroka fc : 2011-07-23 23:34

A squad of 34 will be fine and Khoza should intervene.

Baroka fc : 2011-07-23 23:53

Give Leal power to sign players and will mess up this championship winning team.

Bob \"Qualuty\"Steak : 2011-07-23 23:58

Coach...Coach plz,if u don't know what to say just Shut up or say "it's Football u lose some n Win cum".
if u ever,I repeat, ever talk such Nonsense u r gone,I mean you r trying hard to be like this Clown "VV".The quality u talk about start with u,these friendly games r for u to have a look at ur players,wena as Stupid as u r you play one team-iz there no Pirates without Jali /Manyisa??!! and you failed to instil Discipline.
I'm telling you this for the last time,if Mayambela plays such Nonsense again, Tlou misses a penalty while our opponent scores free kicks from far, Senzo keeps conceding it's you that will be fired.
Thanx to Vovo,Barocka fc ,Legend and many many Bucaneers who see the real problem.

Baroka fc : 2011-07-24 00:02

Now I see why Khoza signs players on his own.

Bob Steak : 2011-07-24 00:19

Another serious and crucial aspect Leal is failling is Instil Discipline and Profesionalism in the Team.
Yes these are friendlies but let us be Profesional like our European counterparts,don't get me wrong,I'm in no way talking about dribbling or anything I m talking about knowing what are playing for,which is to score thus win the game.
If this is not addressed,we will go buy,trim etc but we'll batle.Let him,coach encourage players to score more goals ,try at a distance ,test the keeper,you can have 99%ball posesion it's goals that counts.

moratehi : 2011-07-24 00:26

sometimes i wonder how we as supporters think,i mean Leal is right 28 players are enough,u cannot sign 34 players simply because ur team will be playing in the champions league,it is a recipe for having disgruntled players in ur team,and that is a negative energy u dont need in ur team,NO PLAYER WILL BE SATISFIED TO BE SIGNED TO PLAY ONLY WHEN THE REGULARS ARE INJURED OR AS BACK UP FOR CHAMPIONS LEAGUE,28 PLAYERS PLUS 4 DEVELOPMENT PLAYERS IS ENOUGH,I AGREE 100% WITH U COACH,WE NEED QUALITY NOT QUANTITY EVEN KROL BEMOANED HAVING A HUGE SQUAD AS A COACH DOES NOT HAVE TIME TO FOCUS ON PLAYERS INDIVIDUALLY SO WHERE ARE THIS LEVEL 0 COACHES TALKING ABOUT ON THIS SITE,KHOZA IS NOT A COACH AND AS SUCH SHOULD LISTEN AND SUPPORT HIS COACH

moratehi : 2011-07-24 00:41

Since death robbed us of Lesley Manyathela,Pirates has never had a striker that scored more than 15 league goals,so what does this say about our strikers,THEY ARE NOT OF GOOD QUALITY,LEAL IS STATING THE OBVIOUS BUT STILL THIS CLUELESS BLOGGERS ARE ATTACKING HIM AND HARPING ON ABOUT HAVING A BLOATED SQUAD,PIRATES HAS ABOUT SIX STRIKERS OF POOR QUALITY,I MEAN ARE WE SO USED TO MEDIOCRITY THAT WE WILL ATTACK A COACH THAT IS TRYING TO TAKE PIRATES TO A HIGH LEVEL,THE SOONER WE REALISE THAT RESULTS ARE NOT IMPORTANT DURING PRE SEASON THE BETTER

Baroka fc : 2011-07-24 00:50

Leal annoys me with this 'more signings' talk while we have enough quality.

Baroka fc : 2011-07-24 00:58

Leal should stop asking for more signings while we have enough quality.

Jeffrey Roro  : 2011-07-24 03:21

Leal forget if u thnk dat pirate wil improv. No nid to cut da playrz. Use ur mind. And u r in trouble papa coz du u thnk u gonna stand for ol this tournament including CAf. Sengxakini

Zakumi.com : 2011-07-24 05:24

Leal z a comedy coach how coul u expect to win when u play 4 5 1 combination wit three games in a raw,i dnt think leal will finish dis season wit a happy mood

Sputlaldinho : 2011-07-24 08:00

I enjoyed the game very much cos support Pirates. I love Pirates when they r losing. I enjoy it when the fans of Donkeys cry. Even Drogba Ndulula was crying. What a Donkey!

jabu \'nino\' jilongo : 2011-07-24 08:40

since wel u said u mst get read of quantity u mst start wit dis players Mabena,Cloate,Ngobeni,Mabalani,Tlou,Mayambela,malokase nd makonesse.

Linda : 2011-07-24 08:56

U r on the right track Mr Leal keep it up we surpot u*Once a Pirate always.*

Champ Always in the TOP 8: 2011-07-24 09:54

Sputlaldi-nyo how long have you been here?

Engineer : 2011-07-24 10:58

The coach has had 13 days to prepare for the VC. He played 3 games in 5 days against two professional teams. Tottenham is not your average team. Have you forgotten how they humiliated Inter Milan last season reaching the quarters of the world's best football competition... They were always going to be the favourites going into this game. In fact, they were the favourites to take this whole tournament. Pirates supporters have been made arrogant by those 3 trophies that we won last season. Now we think we're the world's best team. Come back to earth. Stop being so ambitious. Pirates played very well. They could've won that game easily but what the coach is saying is true...we lacked quality especially in the final 3rd where we squandered many scoring opportunities. Therefore we need to improve in quality. No coach can work with 34 players. The coach has a reason for trimming that squad. Whatever decision he makes, is won which he thinks will benefit the team. Leave the coaching job to the coach and do your job by being a supporter. Support this coach and the players he chooses to represent the team this season. Complaining about players you'd love to see there won't change the decision the coach has made. We conquered south africa, now let's be behind the team as we seek to conquer africa. We're only the best if we beat the best. Up the bucs

Weskido wa Ajax: 2011-07-24 11:39

What quality

Mk : 2011-07-24 12:01

Sure engineer. Bt he cud find wat he wants within the group. Wat triming.

Sputlaldinho : 2011-07-24 12:14

There was no way Pirates cud beat Tottenham,they r still immature unlike Chiefs. Only Chiefs can beat Tottenham, Man United nd Man City.

Sweyts: 2011-07-24 12:29

I ca'nt beleive how quickly 'Yambi' has fallen from grace, people are unreasonable yaz', give him a break he was tired mos nifunani kanti? nx.

Viva Yambi-yambi! mh.

Hlalele: 2011-07-24 13:26

English teams with their mind games made Pirates look amateur. Everybody including their coach made them think they are better, now it's quality increment. Go on Mr coach with your excuses, you'll not complete a season here. This is Pirates for you.

Shadrack AKA Mzimela: 2011-07-24 14:09

Labantu basazokhala, they are now waking up from the dream of winning after ten years crying, khalani bomakhalanjalo and stay happy as usual. Happy, happyyyyyyyyyyyyyy Peopleeeee

Viva Khosi Viva

Baroka fc : 2011-07-24 14:47

We lost but for Zebras to go this wild is childish.

Zakumi.com : 2011-07-24 15:29

Bayaziduduza ngokuthi we lost to spurs bt we won against zebra---""---bt the end of the day u lost twice in spurs by the same score 3/0 with difference coach,maybe z not 2 late to bring back krol to continue where he left bcose i dnt c bucs win any trophy dis season under the leadership of leal and his captain legwathi

Sputlaldinho : 2011-07-24 15:53

The way the Donkies were huffing nd puffing in this Vodacom challenge,it will become a daily bread 2 all the teams in the psl. The sooner they change the the coach now the better.

Kris : 2011-07-24 15:59

EZENWA OTOROGU BELONGS TO THE 1ST TEAM.. WHAT'S HE DOING IN THE DEVELOPMENT SIDE????

Baroka fc : 2011-07-24 17:08

This Sputlaldinho sounds like he is a same person as Once a donkey.

nontelele: 2011-07-24 18:12

COACH AS LONG AS YOU SHUT THE ZEBRAS' MOUTH, EVERYTHING WILL BE PHASHASHA. ANYWAY THE 'SAMBA' TRAIN IS STILL IN MOTION. SHAPA TSENTSU SHAPAAAA! ! ! !

mmuntari : 2011-07-24 18:51

while at it ensure that u keep the core team coach,Tebogo will tell u which are the players to keep,and don't touch Mabalane on players u looking to cut that will be coaching suicide sir!Once n always a Pirate.

Champ Always in the TOP 8: 2011-07-24 18:55

Sputlaldi-nyo dont try so hard boy

legs of storm : 2011-07-24 19:16

look @the polls below as to who wil win the Carling Cup next weekend. As expected,the Zebras are leading,jst like they did with the ones 4the vodacom challenge. Talking about winning in the Media.

Dadaki : 2011-07-24 19:45

Its a matter of turning the miss used chances in to goals or it wil cost your head!

Totalfootball : 2011-07-24 22:49

Mayambela is disaster to Pirates,he can't play this unproductive football at this level.

Champ "Superbrand": 2011-07-25 07:54

Hubhu : 2011-07-23 19:11


He..he..nw u talk abt qaulity one wonders what are u going to say when get walloped by Chiefs. I like 2 remind u that once u start loosing 2 Chiefs then u are as good as gone ask Krol.

@Hubhu,

Yes you are spot on!! we dont want ro lose to Baroka. Its ok for Baroka to lose against us but not the otherway around.

Champ "Superbrand": 2011-07-25 08:01

Khosified Brinzo : 2011-07-23 21:39 [ Report ]


Musona wud hav scord dat penalty wit no fear, khune wud hav savd those useles goals, anyway beautiful futbal on da 1st half, da boys lost hope afta the 1st goal

@Khosified Brinzo,

Ha ha ha ha!!!! Where was Musunu on Thursday? Khune was beaten by Tlou so easy.

ngangezwe: 2011-07-25 09:05

Leal must wake up. This is Orlando Pirates.He has enough players as we speak.We have OTOROGU AND MSOWOYA as strikers.We have the ever green Mbuyane as a second striker.These players are more than capable to deliver.I now understand why Krol never started with Mayambela.The guy is a clown.Please Leal, if you want to remain the coach of Pirates for at lease the coming 10 games follow my advise or else the chairman and the Club will soon not guarrantee your safety.Mayambela must start from the bench . This beautiful football nonsense has never worked. The masters of it havent won anything notable for a while .Who wants to spend an afternoo n cheering at tsamayas and shibobos and end up loosing the match.Do that against Chiefs and you are sure to walk Mr Coach. Akudlalwa la.

viper: 2011-07-25 09:21

Dem i know it might be late too comment on this issue, but as a football fan (not as a coach) If coach that is what you think then thats fine. As for cutting its good for the players that r being cut off, its good for thier careers as well..

viper: 2011-07-25 09:28

Who was Jele, Tlou, Mahamutsa, Jali, Maynambela, Manyisa, three to fours back? and who are they today? Building a team is not like boiling eggs, players get developed as the time goes. PSL is 4 developing such players as we all know SA is not big on developments, players are not taught everything while they are young. Give these boys a break.

viper: 2011-07-25 09:34

As for people who hate pirates with passion u have another thing coming your way...Spurs beat us hands down..if that makes you better than us then I admit you are the best... But we will continue to work hard and develop players that make it big in this country as we have always done in the past..as average as we are but we are still going to take on new chalanges..like the CAF.

Hoi Mash: 2011-07-25 10:15

I still love you my Bucaneers, I am yet to see ja team that can play 3 games in 5 days while travelling around 3 provinces and win. but you gave it a go. Three cheers for the Bucs

Jam Jam: 2011-07-25 10:56

"I want to decrease in quantity, but increase in quality,” Leal says

I like your new season approach. Let's get rid of non-contributing players, and stay with quality team that includes few promising youngsters for development.

Jam Jam: 2011-07-25 11:06

Please Leal, do not access Ndulula's ability based on Vodacom Challenge. You had always started Ndulula as a lone striker, and this is putting more pressure on the youngster than giving him a room to open spaces to score goals. Ndulula has been doing well for SA U23 because he had a striking partner.

We (Ghosts) want you to try a striking partnership for Ndulula and Otorogu. Hence our team selection for carling black label cup.

Jam Jam: 2011-07-25 11:17

viper: 2011-07-25 09:28 [ Report ]

Who was Jele, Tlou, Mahamutsa, Jali, Maynambela, Manyisa, three to fours back? and who are they today? Building a team is not like boiling eggs, players get developed as the time goes. PSL is 4 developing such players as we all know SA is not big on developments, players are not taught everything while they are young. Give these boys a break.
================================================================
@ Viber. Spots on
I hope these mogoes who criticised Bucs will read your commend to understand the power of soccer development.
Jele, Manyisa, Segolela, Ndulula and Meyiwa who all played with Hotspurs have been promoted by Bucs from the developments structures.
Mahamutsa is from the lower ranked First Division League.
FINALLY - All the Pirates players who started with Tottenham Hotspurs are fully South African and less than 30 years old (excluding leader - Lekgwathi)

viper: 2011-07-25 11:53

@Hubhu, chiefs would hv won the league if they were not looking at Pirates. we took only a point from you and we won the league. For us even if you beat us we had enough brains to respect the other teams and made sure were are prepared for them...and you make it so obvious that we are the standard and you do everything to reach it. you only performed last season because you were motivated by envy.

viper: 2011-07-25 11:57

Chiefs is ripe and ready to take titles, but they are going to let this opportunity pass them because of jealousy. Boby must wake up and stop managing Pirates, and let chiefs be the force it can be. Now all of a sudden you have the ambition to win the league just because we won it last year.

Jam Jam: 2011-07-25 12:20

viper: 2011-07-25 11:53 [ Report ]

another Good point Viber.
That is why Chiefs managed to win their only major cup (Telkom Knockout) in the past season at the expense of Bucs in the final. This is because Chiefs are only planning against Bucs. Bucs respects everyteam in the PSL, and hence the treble championship.

viper: 2011-07-25 13:11

@Jam Jam, yizo skoko..whether happy or sad I am proud of supporting a team with a vision and ambition to reach greatness...days are coming where all the great young stars will see Pirates as a place to be...i will take pleasure at watch Tlou giving me a headache until he perfects what he is working on.

jabucivcon: 2011-07-25 14:20

manyambela manyambela this is not a circus man if u want to be a clown tell us w'll orginise for u to go there.u cant even pass the ball accuratly.leal quality is there just find the right combination thats all,where is otorogu

mnsibam: 2011-07-25 15:18

I hear people complaining abt Mayambela bt I think our coach needs to work on his final touches and his thinking other wise the boy is gud,I had a problem watching Tlou Segolela on Saturday,that guy is gd player but he doesn't apply his brain in his game he just runs in the field and loose position 7 out of 10 times. As of our couch I think we shud give the guy a break its still too early to judge him

deusdihno  : 2011-07-25 22:54

where is msowoya and otorugo? Thats a deadly combination man!!

Lebo : 2011-07-26 05:59

Keep it up bt we nd striker mshekwi plz