Innocent Maela – Orlando Pirates defender and captain – has spoken about the strong competition for places in the team after his limited contribution so far this season.
Out of the five matches for the Buccaneers so far in the different competitions in the 2023/24 season, Maela has made only one start against Djabal Club of Comoros in the CAF Champions League last weekend.
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For the first two matches in the DStv Premiership, Maela was an unused substitute for Bucs against Stellenbosch FC and Royal AM respectively, while he came on for the last 25 minutes in the third fixture against Chippa United.
Against Sekhukhune United in the MTN8 quart-final match, the 31-year-old was a last minute substitute when he replaced Tapelo Xoki.
"We are a squad of quality players and good players. And like the coach has said, the most important thing for us is to support each other whether you're starting matches or you're watching from the bench because we're playing a role.
"We have a long season ahead and the most important thing is to trust and respect the decisions that have been made. Whether there is pressure for me to start or (if there is) no place in the team, and no one has a starting place in the team, we have to work hard each and every day to earn our stripes," said Maela, speaking to the media.
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"At the end of the day you need to trust the process, you need to trust the decisions and support the team and put other players before you and if you do that, in the long run things always work out. So, yeah, the team comes first, always. It has always been like that for me ever since my first day at the club. You put other people first, you put the team first and things work out at the end," the defender said.