Three Pirates who need to stand up and be counted against Leopards

There is no doubt that Orlando Pirates need some sort of inspiration going into their encounter against Royal Leopards in a Group B clash of the Caf Confederation Cup on Sunday after losing two consecutive games.

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Losing to Kaizer Chiefs and Marumo Gallants has probably brought the morale of the team down, especially looking at the nature of the clashes. Firstly, playing Amakhosi is one of the biggest fixtures in the calendar for the Buccaneers, and losing the Soweto derby really hits players and the fans hard.

The loss to Gallants came in the form of the Nedbank Cup, a tournament that Bucs fans most thought their side could go all the way to lift the silverware, but now the opportunity is all gone as their road ended in the last 16,

Sure, Bucs staged a remarkable come-back against Leopards in the first group match between these sides, after the eSwatini team went 2-0 up, the Buccaneers ending up as 6-2 winners.

But, for a team which lacks confidence, it will prove to be difficult to replicate that performance.

In this case, they will need players with big hearts and who are able to step up when the chips are down.

Here, we look at three players that could help Pirates regain their confidence.

Three players to revive Pirates:

Happy Jele

–          As a leader, Jele has proven in the past that he can lead from the back and has scored some crucial goals for the club when everything seems to be going wrong. He is vocal on the field and he will need to be extra vocal to try and lift his players spirits to get a positive result while making sure that he shuts the back door to not allow Leopards to score.

Kabelo Dlamini

–          Dlamini might have had a bad game during the Gallants clash after missing some opportunities, but the winger can be a valuable asset for Bucs and he adds a lot of impact in the Bucs’ attack.

Bandile Shandu

–          The defender has been quite exceptional in the team and his individual brilliance and scoring goals has helped Bucs a lot. He is a smart player who knows how to place himself well when he is inside the box and that’s how he scores his goals. He will be key to Bucs getting a victory on Sunday.