Have Relebohile Mofokeng, Mohau Nkota, Mbekezeli Mbokazi & Siyabonga Ndlozi made Orlando Pirates the FC Barcelona of South African football? Joseph Makhanya makes bold comparison

In recent seasons, Orlando Pirates have been credited for developing talented players like Relebohile Mofokeng, Mohau Nkota, Mbekeleli Mbokazi, Siyabonga Ndlozi, Boitumelo Radiopane and Thuso Moleleki.

The Buccaneers' reserve team coach, Joseph Makhanya, outlines their development plans and how they have been churning out top talent as he compares them to La Liga giants FC Barcelona.

"You've got to appreciate the way the coach [Jose Riveiro] is doing things," Makhanya told Soccer Laduma.

"He blends them in and finds a game for them to get into the team. It's a huge responsibility. And we should not forget that experience is vital. 

"The PSL is tough, so you need to find the right balance of blending in the youngsters with the senior players.

"What youngsters normally bring is hunger into the game and the experienced players bring the calmness of doing things, so the balance becomes proper," added the former Buccaneers winger.

"We've seen Rele scoring a winning goal in a final, so it tells you that if things are done properly, then they [youngsters] can definitely win trophies and assist in winning the league. We'd love to see the team doing that [winning the league].

"In the second half of the season, people anticipated that Pirates would go into the market and spend a lot of money to bring in players, but they relied on promoting their own, which is positive. Kudos to the coaches at the top because the timing of when they are introduced is key," Makhanya continued.

"If you were to compare it to Barcelona, they've got a strong development. When you look at Barcelona, Ter Stegen is still there, Robert Lewandowski is there, Raphinha is there and Frenkie de Jong is there.

"These are experienced guys in the Barcelona team and then they have the youngsters. So, it tells you that they are striving to have balance so that they can be competitive."

Backing the fact that the Buccaneers' development coaches have been doing a commendable job is the fact that players being produced have been high performers in big games.

Mofokeng is now a full Bafana international and even scored his debut national team goal against Lesotho while Nkota has been outstanding in some Caf Champions League matches.

Mbokazi was named Man of the Match after the blockbuster Premier Soccer League clash with Mamelodi Sundowns last weekend.

There are expectations to see which PSL team continues to produce the best talent going forward.

Mamelodi Sundowns have the likes of Malibongwe Khoza, Kutlwano Letlhaku and Siyabonga Mabena while Mduduzi Shabalala and Mfundo Vilakazi are oustanding Kaizer Chiefs development products.