Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou on their 1-1 draw against Kaizer Chiefs: Our players were subjected to physical brutality in this match

Abdeslam Ouaddou felt confused on whether he was leading Orlando Pirates in a football match or a Karate game.

The Pirates coach felt Kaizer Chiefs did not bring a football game mentality in yesterday’s Betway Premiership match at FNB Stadium.

Siphesihle Ndlovu from the Chiefs side was one player who did not spend the afternoon playing the game fairly.

Ndlovu spent the entire 90 minutes getting physical and it seemed as though he targeted Pirates’ Relebohile Mofokeng as he kept on shoving the nippy player whenever in a duel with him.

Strangely, despite such, referee on the day Abongile Tom did not issue a single yellow or red card.

“About the game, I think we had the game that we expected,” Ouaddou told the media.

“When I saw the line-up, I knew directly that we would be faced with a lot of duels and tough football in the middle. I think in terms of duels, we lost that battle of fighting, and there are games like that, unfortunately.”

“I think sometimes it was even a limit of the red line you couldn’t cross,” he lamented. “If we want to give nice football to the fans—and I think South African fans deserve it when I see the quality of the organisation—we must protect the players who are willing to play football. What I have seen today, I don’t know if I can call it a football game or karate. I have to respect other sporting codes, but it was not a football game.”

“Not everyone was willing to play nice football, and players need to be protected.

“Our three players—Mofokeng, Appollis, and Moremi—were targeted. Not to take the ball within the rules, but to break the legs of the players. This is something I cannot accept in football.”

“A team came not to play football but to destroy and to break the legs of the players. This is what we saw, and it is very bad for football.”