What should Sipho Mbule do to fit in at Orlando Pirates? - 'He is a good player, but he has to change his behaviour'

Former Orlando Pirates midfielder Steve Lekoelea has advised Sipho Mbule to change his behaviour if he wants to fit in at his new Premier Soccer League team.

Mbule is among the new signings brought on board by the Sea Robbers, but his arrival was overshadowed by reported off-pitch issues at his previous clubs.

“He is a good player, but he has to change [his] behaviour because Pirates is a big team," Lekoelea told FARPost.

“He is a big player as well. But if he can reduce what he was doing before, he will fit in well at Pirates. His style matches the culture of Orlando Pirates. I think he is a good signing,” he added.

For the other signings, Lekoelea had a word for them, although he believes they are good players for Pirates.

“Those are good signings for Orlando Pirates. The problem is if the players are not clicking or playing together,” he said.

“The new players must also know that Orlando Pirates players are the coaches. If you don’t perform in two or three games, you are fired.”

Mbule joined Mamelodi Sundowns in 2022 from the defunct SuperSport United. He was part of the Masandawana set-up for three seasons, even though one of them was spent at Sekhukhune United on loan.

Before he signed for Pirates, he was linked and offered to Kaizer Chiefs despite numerous reported off-pitch issues that are understood to have influenced Sekhukhune to terminate his deal.

Mbule is now under Abdeslam Ouaddou, who is understood to be one of his top admirers, and what remains is to see how he will perform under the Moroccan tactician.

In the pre-season, Ouaddou has fielded two separate starting XIs in the three games so far played in an attempt to help his players gel. The pre-season games will also help the coach have an idea of what his starting XI for next season should look like.