Patrick Phungwayo Orlando PiratesBackpagepix

Phungwayo: Orlando Pirates players know what Jonevret wants

Orlando Pirates defender Patrick Phungwayo believes the international break was good because it gave them the opportunity to look back on their past four games under new head coach Kjell Jonevret.

“We had a lot of fun and it served its purpose of uniting the team. It will help us move forward to achieve the goals we have set,” Phungwayo told Daily Sun.

They have shown a bit of improvement under Jonevret, who took over from Augusto Palacios in February. They drew their first three league games and won their Nedbank Cup first round clash against EC Bees before the break.

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That was their first win in all competitions since November last year when they won 1-0 at Chippa United.

“Our coach had enough time in the past three weeks to make us understand what he requires. So, the initative was also to reflect on what we have done in our past four games. We now know what he expects from us and will do our best to give our fans something to cheer about,” Phungwayo said.

They will visit Free State Stars in the league on Saturday, before playing them again next week in the Nedbank Cup Last 16.

“The second round is not easy,” Phungwayo stated.

“They are desperate, but we also need points to move up the table and show that we are still a big team. Stars players have speed and a high work rate. If we can match them, we stand a good chance of winning. They have a tricky coach who can surprise us. We need to be ready for anything they throw at us,” Phungwayo concluded.

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