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The Buccaneers may have to rely on goals from midfield and even defense if they want to compete for the league this season.
Orlando Pirates forward Zakhele Lepasa has come a long way since he came into the limelight after Gabadinho Mhango’s injury.
The 23-year-old has appeared in six games for the Pirates this season, three in the starting lineup and three off the bench.
He also recorded his first goal of the season (adding two goals in six appearances last season) in the Pirates’ 3-0 demolition of Kaizer Chiefs in a first leg MTN8 semi-final game two weekends ago.
In his most recent outing, the Pirates’ 2-0 victory over Amakhosi in the second leg, Lepasa was back in spirits and caused several problems for the opposing defense.
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His movement and energy were excellent, but there were times when he held on to the ball for too long and should have shot earlier or played with a teammate.
“Sometimes he wants to do too much and when he calms down a bit and concentrates on helping and working for the team, I think we will get a good player from him in the next days, months, he needs a little time.” said head coach Josef Zinnauber, quoted by The citizen.
Certainly the former TS Galaxy shooter looks like a bright prospect for the future. But he’s not ready to carry the burden of scoring goals at a big club like the Pirates just yet.
The man who can do that, he scored 16 league goals last season, is Mhango. But with the Malawian ruled out injured and another forward, Tshegofatso Mabasa, still reeling from the injury, the Bucs look a bit light up front, especially since they let Justin Shonga and Augustine Mulenga out.
Mabasa himself isn’t much different from Lepasa – he did very well in the early stages of last season and scored six goals for the Bucs, but he’s not fully proven yet.
The pirates also have the option of Terrence Dzvukamanja of Zimbabwe, who looks decent, but after all only scored seven league goals in two seasons with former club Bidvest Wits.
So it looks like if the Pirates are going to fight for honors this season, especially in the league and in the ‘longest’ cups, the Nedbank Cup and Telkom Knockout, they will be looking for goals from the entire team.
However, the good news is that midfielders like Thembinkosi Lorch, Vincent Pule, Deon Hotto and Fortune Makaringe are decent scorers, and even defenders like Thulani Hlatshwayo and Innocent Maela have the knack of getting on the scoreboard.
