Soccer
Gallants’ defensive turnaround wins coach’s praise─── MORGAN PIEK 09:33 Thu, 17 Apr 2025
Marumo Gallants coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has admitted that his biggest area of focus since taking charge has been the team’s defence.
Despite still holding the unenviable record of conceding the most goals in the Premier Soccer League this season, Gallants have shown significant improvement in this department.
As a former international centre-back for Morocco, Ouaddou has a deep understanding of defensive play and his influence is becoming clear.
Langelihle Phili and Edson Khumalo. Photo: Morgan Piek
Ouaddou said that shoring up the back line has been his greatest challenge so far, and he praised the players for buying into his system.
“Firstly, when you arrive at a new club – especially without any preparation or pre-season – and there are only 10 games remaining, it’s not easy because you don’t know the players well. So, you have to analyse why the team has been struggling,” said Ouaddou.
“When I came in, the first assessment I did showed that there was too much space between the lines. The team wasn’t defending well, wasn’t coordinated, and had already conceded 30 goals. So my main task was to introduce certain principles – defensive principles – so that we could defend as a unit. I wanted to teach the players when, where, and how to recover the ball.
“When all 11 players on the pitch can answer that question together, then yes – you start to see us becoming stronger. But defending well on its own isn’t enough. In football, you also need to score goals.”
The former Fulham player added that while the attacking side of the game is just as important, there simply hasn’t been enough time to instil those principles, the immediate priority being to avoid finishing in the promotion-relegation playoff spot at the end of the campaign.
“Unfortunately, we’ve tried, but we haven’t had the time to work on all the attacking principles – and in football, that’s the most difficult side to teach. Right now, we have to act fast because the priority is to save the club and that’s exactly what we’ve been doing.
Marumo Gallants left-back Lebogang Mabotja and Devin Titus. Photo: Morgan Piek
“But I’m proud of the players because they understood my plan and my game model very quickly. We’ll definitely keep pushing forward and continue fighting to save the club.”
Meanwhile, on Saturday, Marumo Gallants will take on Golden Arrows at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein.
