Ouaddou coy on Mofokeng absence

Orlando Pirates forward, Relebohile Mofokeng, was a notable absentee at the club’s training session on Friday ahead of their CAF Champions League second leg first preliminary round clash against Lesotho champions Lioli FC.

When asked about the Bafana Bafana star’s absence, Pirates coach Abdeselam Ouaddou, remained tight-lipped.

“I have to speak with my medical department to see what is going on. Rele is an important player for us but we have to speak with the medical department, I can’t tell you more about him,” Ouaddou said.

Pirates hold a 3-0 advantage in the tie having won the first leg convincingly last week in Bloemfontein.

When asked if he will be giving fringe players some minutes in Saturday clash, the Moroccan insisted that he will field a competitive team.

“About the second question, I don’t need to see my players more because I know them. I had two months, three months especially in the preparation to see the level of my players, I know them very well,” he said.

𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐠 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧, 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐨☠

🎤 Assistant Coach | Mandla Ncikazi;

“We don’t take anything for granted. We have seen these things before.”

⚫⚪🔴⭐#OrlandoPirates#OnceAlways pic.twitter.com/qsfjUgB0eZ

— Orlando Pirates (@orlandopirates) September 26, 2025

Written by: Ntsako Mukhari