Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou may have just reignited hope for supporters after how his side reacted from being goal down to Mamelodi Sundowns yesterday.
The lanky Moroccan tactician went to bed last night with a slight sigh of relief, as his side did not suffer yet another defeat, especially at the hands of its nemesis, Sundowns.
This was probably already the biggest game in Ouaddou’s coaching career, given the expectation and duress he was under building up to this blockbuster after losing two league games on the trot.
Anticipating some sort of reaction to how his line-up would shape up, Ouaddou switched things up and responded to the fans’ outcry by starting both Thalente Mbatha and Deano Van Rooyen.
Maybe the goal they conceded in the first half gave them a wake-up call as they came out looking much better in the second half and managed to salvage something from the game with a late equaliser from Kamogelo Sebelebele.
The second leg next week is expected to be equally heated in Tshwane, with Sundowns with an away goal advantage.
Arguably the biggest rivalry after the Soweto derby, the fixture between Pirates and Sundowns got the entire country talking.
Also, it must be mentioned that this fixture is as competitive on the pitch, as it is cut-throat on the technical side.
Both teams also had “chemical engineers”, sprinkling who knows what on each goal post. That entire exercise, though, tends not to always end well, as some “chemical engineers” ended up being manhandled, especially in Orlando.
