Former Orlando Pirates star warns Bucs cannot compete with Mamelodi Sundowns - 'Don’t even think of overtaking Masandawana for now'

Former Orlando Pirates winger Daine Klate has explained why the Buccaneers have struggled to compete with Mamelodi Sundowns in the Premier Soccer League.

Although Klate believes Pirates have made some progress in the recent past, he says the Soweto titans are not in a place to compete, toe-to-toe, with Sundowns at the moment.

“Sundowns have really dominated, and it’s difficult for Pirates to catch up, and I’m happy to see the progress they have made," Klate said, as per FARPost.

“They came close this year; they can go back next year and look at where they went wrong this season and which games they were supposed to win and which games kept them close to Sundowns.

“The most important thing is to come close to Sundowns; don’t even think of overtaking Sundowns for now," he added.

“You know they are on 73 points; we played for 60-something points and won the league. This is how we used to win the league back in the day. Sundowns have upped the standard to the 70-point mark. An extra ten points is needed to compete with Sundowns.”

The former Bucs forward has linked Pitso Mosimane with the stability and success that the Brazilians have enjoyed over the years.

“Pitso [Mosimane] left Sundowns in a good space, and whoever came in after that enhanced it,” Klate stated.

“The players that they bring in, they’ve got a clear profile of a player they want, in what position they want. They don’t just go out and sign whoever is in the market," he added.

“They don’t sign a player because for another team, they sign that player because they want him to come and compete with whoever they have. That brings about the competition that’s been the key to Sundowns’ success; it’s the competition within the group and the way the club operates."

For three consecutive seasons now, Pirates have attempted to wrestle the title from Sundowns but were not successful in the end.

They finished second to the Tshwane giants when Jose Riveiro was in charge, and after the Spaniard left, it remains to be seen whether the next coach will be able to do what his predecessor failed.

Masandawana wrapped up the title race with some games to go and ended up concluding the campaign with 73 points, while Pirates were second with 61 points. This gap illustrates how the two PSL rivals were worlds apart in terms of competitiveness.

The Tshwane giants have been tipped to remain dominant in the league, given the deep squad they enjoy and indeed the quality of players at their disposal.

With Bucs expecting a new coach, the fans can only hope that the incoming mentor can do better than Riveiro managed, as they are eager to see their team win the league after waiting for so long.