Former Orlando Pirates goalkeeper William Shongwe has analyzed the club's pre-season friendly matches in Spain.
On Sunday, the Buccaneers played to a 1-1 draw against the Cypriot side, Pafos. Last week, Pirates lost to Bolton Wanderers, and drew 0-0 to Spanish second tier team, Las Palmas on Thursday evening.
"I've seen teams perform well in pre-season games, but when the league starts, they falter," Shongwe tells KickOff.
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"The Pirates coach is focusing on fitness levels and conditioning. It's a process that shouldn't be rushed for the sake of results. Right now, results aren't the main objective. The coach is looking for a particular combination, and it appears he is still unsure about it.
"The arrival of Appollis has changed the team's structure. Mofokeng has been shifted to the right side to accommodate Appollis. We don’t know if Mofokeng will be effective on the right. Yes, he scored against Pafos, but I didn't see the usual impact he has when playing on the left.
"On a positive note, the defence looked solid after a shaky start. However, with Makhaula absent, opposing teams have more freedom in the midfield, which puts a lot of pressure on Sibisi and Mbokazi," he added.
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"If Mofokeng plays wide on the right and the opposition’s full-back gets past him, he may become irrelevant to the play. This could overload Van Rooyen. However, if he plays as an inverted winger, he could help strengthen the midfield.
"The next two matches are against top teams, and that’s when we’ll start to see the coach use a line-up that we might expect in the PSL.
"These upcoming games will reveal the true situation. So far, I’m impressed with the organization in defence; they didn't allow any crosses."
Image via @orlandopirates on X
