Orlando Pirates sweating on key players ahead of Mamelodi Sundowns clash

Orlando Pirates coach Josef Zinnbauer hopes to have more of his players available for Thursday’s Nedbank Cup clash with Mamelodi Sundowns.

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The matches have been coming thick and fast for the Soweto giants which has resulted in a number of players picking up niggling injuries.

Zinnbauer says it would be ideal to have some of the sidelined stars back in the fray when Orlando Pirates take on Masandawana in the Nedbank Cup quarter-final.

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The match kicks off at 18:00 at Loftus Versfeld on Thursday, 15 April.

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“We have a special game against the best team in the league,” said Josef Zinnbauer, as quoted by The Citizen.

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“For us it is important to get players back. We can see how many games we have had, with players travelling and having to play every two or three days. We need other guys so we can change the starting line-up.”

He added: “Against Al Ahli Tyson (Thulani Hlatshwayo) had a rest, but there was also the international week. If players come back injured you cannot work with those players. If most or all our players are available I am happy as a coach and can look forward to the next game.”

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