With Happy Jele shown the exit door at Orlando Pirates, José Riveiro will soon pick a new club captain, a player that can inspire the Soweto giants to greatness. A Pirates legend has revealed his three candidates for the Pirates captaincy.
The Bucs parted ways with Jele on Monday, and Benedict 'Tso' Vilakazi has thrown around three names, two defenders, and a goalkeeper as players with capabilities to become the next captain of the Soweto giants.
The departures of three players who used to wear the captain's armband; Jele, Thulani Hlatswayo, and Ntsikelelo Nyauza, means Pirates will have a new leader for the 2022/23 season.
"The current Pirates team doesn't have leaders, I don't see anyone with leadership skills in the team. They have released all their leaders," Vilakazi told the Siya crew.
View Jele's career in images:
"Tapelo Xoki and Nkosinathi Sibisi might have been captains at their respective teams, but Pirates is a big club, and I don't think they have what it takes to captain Bucs, and they still have to settle in first at the club.
"But maybe Olisa Ndah. You can see from the way he plays that he's got leadership qualities, he is a centre-back and communicates well with his teammates. The ways he goes about his business, helping his teammate as well in terms of getting things under control, he is a calm head.
"He might still be new at the club, but that's a player you want as a captain. He is more or less like Happy Jele. He has some leadership skills because when he is on the field of play, you can see the organisation at the back; the direction is there, he takes charge, and there is a leader in him.
"I'm not sure, but maybe Richard Ofori. Even though I believe he is just a loud player. There is a difference between being a leader and a loud player, so he is a loud person; he always pushes and forces things to happen, not as a leader but as a loud person. A leader thinks and reads the situation and responds accordingly, so Ofori is just loud and quick in reacting," Vilakazi added.
"Maybe Innocent Maela as well, I mean, there aren't too many options. He has been at the club for a while and has some international football experience but was not a regular last season. But to be honest, Ndah is the only real candidate for captaincy at Pirates."
How does Mzansi feel about Happy Jele and Orlando Pirates parting ways? Find out by listening in the podcast player below!
