Saleng thanks Pirates coaches after brace against Arrows

It was probably his best performance since he joined Orlando Pirates and Monnapule Saleng has credited the Bucs coaching staff for always believing in him for the perfect display against Golden Arrows which saw him score a brace.

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Saleng scored a first half brace to help Pirates beat Arrows 2-0 at the Princess Magogo Stadium on Tuesday. The 24-year-old winger walked away with the man-of-the-match accolade for his role in helping Bucs get the victory.

“I am really grateful, and thanks to the technical staff for believing and trusting me because they never gave up because I was not scoring. So, they always pushed me during training that I would start scoring goals and they would always give me advice,” said Saleng after the game.

“In this game they gave me a message to play just nearby [Kermit] Erasmus because he likes holding balls. So, when I am wide, I would come near him whenever he had the ball on his feet. Even the goals that I scored come from him because I was always near him. I would start wide, but immediately when he had the ball I would quickly make sure that I was near him. That allowed me to always be in the right position to score,” added Saleng.

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The victory against Arrows was important for the Soweto giants because it ended their four games winless run. They have now collected 19 points in 12 games.

Bucs’ next task is a tough clash against Mamelodi Sundowns in the second leg of the MTN8 semi-finals which will be played at the Peter Mokaba Stadium on Saturday. The teams played to a goalless draw in the first leg.