Will this MAJOR MISTAKE cost Orlando Pirates the league title?

Orlando Pirates could soon face the music after failing to make any signings in the summer.

It’s not that they didn’t try, failing to land Oswin Appollis after months of negotiations, but one could argue that they weren’t looking at the bigger picture.

With the authoritarian Polokwane chairman Johnny Mogaladi at the helm, signing Appollis and Thabang Matuludi was always going to be tricky, yet Orlando Pirates remained persistent.

Their eagerness to land the Polokwane pair was arguably their biggest mistake, diverting their attention from the array of talent up for grabs, including Cape Town City star Jaedin Rhodes.

The former PSL Young Player of the Year has reportedly been on Orlando Pirates’ radar for months.

Injuries hurting Pirates

In dealing with several injuries against the mighty Mamelodi Sundowns on February 8, Jose Riveiro was forced to field players with little playing time thus far in the season.

The Brazilians ran riot over the Sea Robbers, winning 4-1. Some summer signings would have helped fill the voids of the missing Thalente Mbatha and Thabiso Sesane that day.

Squad depth is essential to a successful season; teams like Masandawana can field two first-teams at any point, showcasing their ability to deal with the inevitability of injuries, arguably their biggest strength and the secret to seven successive league titles.

Orlando Pirates must start acting like champions if they want to win.

Rhodes interest confirmed

“He (Rhodes) has been one of their (Orlando Pirates’) targets for some time now,” SoccerLaduma reported.

“They have been monitoring him though there hasn’t been much happening. They were targeting him for the January transfer window period,

“Now that it didn’t happen they have more time to work on it and will see what happens in the next window. But they are interested in him. That I can tell you,

Another credible source said, “obviously, they (Pirates) will either loan some out or release some as well. But that’s the time they need to work on their squad and since it didn’t happen in January then they will work on it in the off season. Rhodes is one player on that list already.“

Can Orlando Pirates win the league this year?

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