{
  "id": 361070,
  "title": "Pirates coach Ouaddou defends team selection after City win",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/09/pirates-coach-ouaddou-defends-team-selection-after-city-win",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-09T07:58:25.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Citizen",
    "slug": "the-citizen",
    "url": "https://www.citizen.co.za/sport/soccer/local-soccer/pirates-coach-ouaddou-defends-team-selection-after-city-win/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Orlando Pirates head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou stood by his decision to field his strongest squad for the match against Durban City, which resulted in a 2-1 victory after extra time. Despite the expectation to rotate his players for the cup competition, Ouaddou opted to utilize his regular players from the previous season. Following the game, he clarified that there is significant pressure from the club’s management and fans to secure a win, thus only deserving players are selected to start. Ouaddou emphasized that they are in a professional environment, not a circus, and that they aim to win. He stated that he will field his strongest team as the fans and the club are eager for success, and winning is a challenging task. Ouaddou reiterated that there are no guarantees, and competing among the players is crucial. He concluded by noting that when a team experiences losses, the individuals involved are often in the spotlight.",
  "summary": "\" I'm not here to give flowers to people. We are not in the circus. We are in a professional ecosystem,\" said Ouaddou.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}