Johannesburg – Orlando Pirates’ assistant coach Fadlu Davids will have his job cut out for him this evening when he takes charge of the dugout against a defiant Bloemfontein Celtic side in the DStv Premiership.
Pirates’ head coach Josef Zinnbauer is on compassionate leave back home in Germany after his son Fabio was involved in a life-threatening car accident and has been in a coma for almost two weeks.
But prior to his abrupt departure on Saturday night, Zinnbauer led his charges to a convincing 3-0 win over rivals Kaizer Chiefs in the first leg of the MTN8 semi-finals – a feat that could prove to be invaluable in their silverware aspirations.
Pirates, though, will be hoping to build on that momentum heading into tonight’s match.
But Davids will be in the spotlight.
Should things go bad for the Buccaneers, the 39-year-old will be on the receiving end of a backlash from ‘The Ghost’ as someone who undid all Zinnbauer’s hard work thus far.
Equally, former Maritzburg.
Davids stands to received praise if he bags his team’s first league win of the season after the team failed to get their campaign up and running with two draws to start the season.
Having been with the club for almost four seasons, Davids is one of the longest serving members of Pirates’ current technical team, so expect him to know the current crop of players like the back of his hand.
