Back to the drawing board for Pirates

Orlando Pirates coach Milutin Sredojovic felt his side could have killed the game early in the first half as sloppy defending cost them maximum points after they were forced to share the spoils with Baroka FC following a 1-1 draw at Peter Mokaba Stadium on Tuesday.

“Micho”, who got off to a promising start in his second stint as the Buccaneers coach with a 1-0 victory over Chippa United last weekend, was left disappointed to see his side give up their lead from a corner kick headed in by Hassan Bandai in the 72nd minute after Thabo Qalinge gave them a lead in the 37th minute.

“We were supposed to kill the game and punish them. However, we need to pick up the pieces as we are a work in progress,” Micho told SuperSport after the match.

“We started really well and dominated the first-half and when we opened the scoring we agreed at half-time that instead of sitting back and defending, we shall come out and play football to try to kill off the game.

“However, an instinct that is inside the players pulled them back. We were dropping back and then came the corner kick and that is where we were punished.”

The Pirates mentor added that they will have to go back to the drawing board to take a close look at how they conceded the goal as they prepare for their next match against Ajax Cape Town at Orlando Stadium on September 12.

“We will go back to the drawing board and work hard to prepare for the next game against Ajax Cape Town,” he said.

Sredojovic, meanwhile, has to worry about finding a replacement for the club’s top-goal scorer from last season, Tendai Ndoro, who is set to join Saudi Arabian club Al Faisaly FC.