Five areas where Pirates can improve
NEW COACH: SREDOJEVIC HAS A LOT OF WORK AHEAD Bucs fans hope it will be third time lucky for their club.
Orlando Pirates are hoping the return of Milutin Sredojevic can help bring a change of fortune at the club, following the past two seasons of struggle. However, the new man in the Buccaneers’ hot seat has plenty of work to do. In this week’s Phakaaathi, we take a closer look and gives five things he needs to sort out in his bid to bring back the glory days. 1. Appointing a captain
Oupa Manyisa’s move to Sundowns shocked many in the football fraternity when Bucs chairman Irvin Khoza announced the skipper’s move last week. Ace, as Manyisa is affectionately known, was given the armband following the tragic death of goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa. However, many didn’t feel confident with the midfielder taking over the captaincy and he was always criticised for his leadership qualities. Now with Manyisa gone, Micho has to appoint a new leader. 2. Goalkeeping Crisis
The club hasn’t had a clear firstchoice keeper since the passing of Meyiwa. Last season, Brighton Mhlongo, Jackson Mabokgwane and Siyabonga Mpontshane all had their fair share of standing between the sticks for Bucs, but none of them was guaranteed a place in the starting line-up. The team currently has four keepers with Wayne Sandilands having joined from Sundowns, while there is also Emmanuel Daniels. Mhlongo has gone to Chippa United. 3. Leaking defence
The forever changing back four at Bucs was one of the major reasons why the club conceded 40 goals last season. Micho has to have a solid rearguard which will have to be consistent throughout the season. 4. Boost players’ confidence
The past two seasons have been really hard at Bucs with the team failing to lift any silverware. The morale of the players seems to have reached a new low especially with the fact that the club failed to finish the season in the top eight of the Absa Premiership. Micho now needs to rekindle the self-belief in the players and make them believe they can compete for every trophy on offer. 5. Get the strikeforce firing
Tendai Ndoro looked on target to be top scorer in the first half of last season, but then ground to a halt and was sitting on the bench for many of the games Kjell Jonevret took charge of towards the end of the campaign. Micho must try to get the best out of both Ndoro and Thamsanqa Gabuza, and it will be interesting to see if he goes with one or two strikers in attack. Pirates also have a new Nigerian striker in Christian Obiozor at the coach’s disposal.