Coach Ouaddou says Marumo Gallants star can excel in Europe

Nemtajela: Photo Credit: Marumo Gallants.

Marumo Gallants’ coach Abdselam Ouaddou has explained why the South African team’s midfielder Masindi Nemtajela can make it in European football.

Ouaddou told the South African Broadcasting Corporation that Nemtajela has all the attributes of a player who can make the grade in European leagues.

“He is a top player. He was not playing a lot in the beginning but as I told you, he has a lot of time to progress because his development is not finished,” he said. “I am very impressed. I can tell you if this player continues to work hard, he can easily play in Europe. I was a coach in Europe. He is a top, top player.”

The former Vita Club coach is banking on players such as Nemtajela to help the team’s bid for survival from relegation in the Betway Premiership. Ouaddou said it was tough to turn around the Bloemfontein-based club’s fortunes as he joined late.

“When you first arrive in the club and you didn’t have any pre-season and there are 10 games to go, you don't know the players, so you have to analyse the cause, why they are struggling,” the Moroccan explained.

Ouaddou, who joined the 2021 Nedbank Cup champions on a short-term contract until the end of the season, cited poor defending as the reason for Gallants’ struggles.

“When I came, this team had too many spaces between the lines. They didn't defend well. They were not coordinating well and they conceded first goals,” he explained.

“My main job was to bring some principles to defend collectively, to teach the guys when, how, and where to recover the ball. Now, it is not enough to defend well because in football, you have to score goals. In football, the attacking principles are the most difficult to teach.”

Having presided over three wins, two losses and one draw since replacing Dan Malesela, the 46-year-old former defender is confident Gallants would beat the drop.

Gallants’ next league assignment is at home against Golden Arrows on April 19, 2025, when Ouaddou would seek to see his team bounce back from the 1-0 loss to Orlando Pirates in the Nedbank Cup semifinal over the weekend.