Fifteen thousand fans will be allowed to watch Pirates against Libyan outfit Al-Ittihad at the Orlando Stadium on Sunday. Picture: Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix
A total of fifteen thousand fans will be allowed to watch Orlando Pirates host Libyan outfit Al-Ittihad in the last group stages game of the Caf Confederations Cup at the Orlando Stadium on Sunday.
The club made an announcement following president Cyril Ramaphosa’s call to allow venues to have 50 percent of capacity, which in the process was welcomed by the Premier Soccer League and the South African Football Association.
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The return of football fans came at the right time for the Buccaneers, who have already booked their spot in the quarter-finals of the competition with a game to spare in Group B and they need all the support they can get to continue their journey in the tournament.
“Orlando Pirates is pleased to announce that tickets for the TotalEnergies Confederation Cup clash against Al-Ittihad Club from Libya are now available. It has been a long time coming and watching football on TV, with fake crowd sounds, is just not the same. The 12th man has been sorely missed up in the rafters and thankfully as of this weekend, South African supporters from across Mzansi can return to the stadium,” the club announced on their website
“The Vuvuzela. The cheering. The booing. The highs. The lows. It all adds to the drama of the spectacle. There are only 15 000 stand tickets for this all-important top of the table clash which will be played at Orlando Stadium on Sunday.”
Pirates go into this match sitting at the top of the group with 12 points after five matches, while Ittihad are second with 10 points, followed by Algerians JS Saoura, who are on seven and Royal Leopards of eSwatini are yet to register any point.
With the Buccaneers already through, it is Ittihad who will have to give their all to guarantee their place in the knockout stages.
The Libyan outfit need a draw or a win to go through since a victory for Saoura against Leopards will put them level on 10 points with Ittihad.
For the Buccaneers, it’s all about keeping their place at the top and should they lose this tie, they will wrap up the group phase in second place.
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