Thalente Mbatha of Orlando Pirates made his firt appearance since after the World Cup when he came accross Aubrey Modiba's Mamelodi Sundowns during the 2026 MTN8 Final at Moses Mabhida Stadium.

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Orlando Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has explained why midfielder Thalente Mbatha was left out against TS Galaxy as the Buccaneers turn their attention to the CAF Champions League.

Mbatha made his long-awaited return from injury during the MTN8 final against Mamelodi Sundowns last Saturday, having spent approximately two months on the sidelines.

His impressive performance in the defeat raised hopes that he would feature again when Pirates faced TS Galaxy on Tuesday, but Ouaddou opted against risking the midfielder.

The Moroccan coach revealed that Mbatha had undergone surgery after returning from the national team's Wolrd Cup duty and had worked hard to regain his fitness.

“When he came back from the national team, he had surgery and we did everything to bring him back in terms of rehabilitation and I think it was a surprise for you to see him in the MTN8 final,” Ouaddou said after Tuesday’s match.

“I was so amazed about his performance in the final. It has been a long time that I did not see such quality of Mbatha. High level, so we don’t want to take risks with Mbatha.

“He is an important player for us and we played two days after (MTN8 final) and we do not want to take any risk about him,” the coach added.

Pirates will now travel to Botswana to face Namibian champions African Stars in the first leg of their second preliminary-round tie in the 2026/27 CAF Champions League on Saturday.

The Buccaneers are chasing a place in the group stages and will want to take a positive result into the return leg at Orlando Amstel Arena on October 23.

With the two matches coming in quick succession, managing Mbatha’s workload will be important as Ouaddou looks to balance the midfielder’s recovery with Pirates’ ambitions on the continental stage.