Orlando Pirates' spike in number of new signings has reached an eight-year high, with such levels not even seen under the side's former head coach, Jose Riveiro.
Riveiro was starved of quantity, let alone quality of signings in his last two seasons at Pirates, as newcomers became a rarity compared to his first campaign.
READ | EXCLUSIVE: Yes, Kaizer Chiefs called me last week...
Ahead of the 2025/26, Bucs have upped the ante with regards to new signings - 11 in total so far - giving new coach Abdeslam Ouaddou a headache and a load of expectations.
What also stands out is that this is the first time in over a decade that the club has made two marquee signings in the same window period of South Africa's winter, after acquiring Oswin Appollis and Sipho Mbule.
The last time, which was a first in many years, that they made a big signing in the winter was in the 2022/23 campaign, bringing in Kermit Erasmus from from Sundowns on transfer deadline day.
Pirates stars over the years, especially in recent seasons, have emerged from being unknown and still raw from so-called smaller clubs, including the likes of Monnapule Saleng, Patrick Maswanganyi, and Relebohile Mofokeng (from the development), who only started to build a name for themselves at the Soweto giants.
READ: Moment of gloss for Ngezana this week
The big number of signings, therefore, is not a barometer for serious intentions, but the biggest questions will be whether the likes of Yanela Mbuthuma, Kamogelo Sebelebele, Tshepang Moremi, Sihle Nduli, Sinoxolo Kwayiba, Nkosikhona Ndaba, and Masindi Nemtajela are adding quality or just quantity to the roster.
