Orlando Pirates news: Monnapule Saleng, Mbatha, Mofokeng

Orlando Pirates have Mamelodi Sundowns in their sights but still lag nine points behind.

It’s their two games in hand that are giving the Buccaneers faithful optimism after having it depleted after the Brazilians defeated Jose Riveiro’s side 4-1 earlier this month.

But a shock loss to TS Galaxy halted Masandawana from running off into the distance; a slither of hope remains that Orlando Pirates can end Sundowns’ seven-year domination.

Rumours around the club

• The Monnapule Saleng debacle hasn’t gotten any better and the reasoning behind his lack of playing time remains vague – Orlando Pirates put it down to ‘personal issues’, but some suggest that they’re hiding the truth.
• Midfielder Thalente Mbatha was wrongly accused by fans of missing the Mamelodi Sundowns game due to ill-discipline, when, in fact, he sustained an injury after the Sekhukhune United victory. The 24-year-old is expected to play against Golden Arrows tonight.
• Orlando Pirates recently rejected an R25.8 million bid by Zamalek FC for Relebohile Mofokeng. The Soweto Giants will undoubtedly have more clubs lurking.

Mbatha update

Following reports of Mbatha showing up to training hungover, the box-to-box maestro squashed the claims in Instagram live, saying, “they said I’m not training, you listen to everything, and I just came back from training. People can say whatever about me, but I’m coming from training,

“You guys will see me tomorrow [against Golden Arrows]. I guess the person who said this knows better; maybe he’s the one who hired me, or he owns the club. You see when you’re doing well, people will always want to do things to bring you down,

“What I say, guys is that I’m from training, and in the past matches, I was injured; even the team did say that I was injured. I’m fit for tomorrow; if they put me in the team, then I’m playing.”

Can Orlando Pirates chase Sundowns?

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