Orlando Pirates vs Jwaneng Galaxy early preview – CAF Champions League

Orlando Pirates vs Jwaneng Galaxy early preview – CAF Champions League
Credit: Icon Sport

Premier Soccer League giants Orlando Pirates will take on Botswana side Jwaneng Galaxy in the second round of the CAF Champions League after a comfortable first round dispersal of Djabal.

The Buccaneers are aiming to record another success in this competition, and are one tie away from a place in the CAF Champions League group stage.

The road to the profitable group stage is however not going to be a rollercoaster for the Buccaneers; this is true because their opponents, Jwaneng Galaxy, are no push-overs, they can hold their own and can oust the Bucs from this competition.

Orlando Pirates players in action
Credit: Icon Sport

As champions of the Botswana Premier League, Jwaneng Galaxy have all it takes to compete with the early favourites of this tie, Orlando Pirates.

As a matter of fact, Morena Ramoreboli's side got to the group stage of this competition in their first attempt last season; buoyed by this record, they'll play with confidence and try to knock off Orlando Pirates to achieve back-to-back CAF Champions League group stage dreams.

How both teams qualified for the second round

Orlando Pirates qualified for the CAF Champions League preliminary round courtesy of their second place finish in the Premier Soccer League last season to then draw Djabal in the first round.

A 4-0 aggregate win over the Comorans ensured the Bucs place in the second round of this competition.

On the other hand, Jwaneng Galaxy second appearance in this competition was made possible by their best showing in the Botswana Premier League, emerging champions over every other contestant in the top-flight before drawing Vipers SC in the first round.

Morena Ramoreboli's outfit overcame Ugandan Viper SC 2-3 on aggregate to advance to the second round of the CAF Champions League.

As the second round is set to begin in September, let's delve into the strengths and weaknesses of these teams

Orlando Pirates – Strengths and weaknesses

It is important to know that Orlando Pirates are a good side, they're actually the bookmakers favourites to come out tops from this clash. However, they both have their strengths and weaknesses ahead of this clash. Let's get to know them.

Orlando Pirates players celebrate scoring a goal
Credit: Icon Sport

Strengths

  • Orlando Pirates have experienced players whose participation in a league as tough as the PSL gives them an edge to see off Jwaneng Galaxy.
  • Orlando Pirates boasts an attacking line of dangerous players who have form on their side going into this clash. Players like Zakhele Lepasa and Kabelo Dlamini can make the difference in this clash.
  • The Bucs have history on their side in this competition. They've won it once and appeared in the group stage on a total of six occasions.
  • Jose Riveiro's team has a squad depth of players who can come up at any given time to give their all to ensure qualification.
  • The Premier Soccer League that Orlando Pirates play in is more competitive than the opponent's league, this is one strength that can make the difference on the day.

Weaknesses

  • The Bucs have a goalie that has conceded in 10 of his last 13 appearances across all competitions. The Galaxy team can exploit this weakness to their advantage.
  • In addition to the goalkeeper, Pirates have a porous backline that allows opponents to breach them on many occasions in their last 13 matches. This can be an exploitative window for Galaxy forwards to manipulate and get crucial goals in this clash.

Jwaneng Galaxy – Strengths and weaknesses

Galaxy have a fair share of experience at this stage of the competition. They will be banking on their chances to achieve yet another group stage appearance. Nevertheless, Orlando Pirates is a big obstacle standing in their way but they have positives and negatives they can work on to improve their chances.

Strengths

  • The clash with SC Vipers has shown that Galaxy can score home and away. They will fancy their chances in netting on both legs against the Bucs
  • Jwaneng Galaxy have a scoring streak of 11 straight games ahead of their clash with Orlando Pirates
  • The Botswana Premier League champions boasts a dangerous player in the person of Seninyi in their ranks. The forward has netted 8 goals in his last 5 games.

Weaknesses

  • They're yet to resume competitive league football. In contrast, Orlando Pirates are battle ready having played at least five competitive games this season.
  • Jwaneng Galaxy is fairly new in the CAF Champions League compared to their opponents, only making their debut last season. Their lack of depth in experience can work in Orlando Pirates' favour.

Orlando Pirates and Jwaneng Galaxy CAF Champions League match schedule

First leg date: 15 September 2023

Jwaneng Galaxy vs Orlando Pirates' first leg match will be played at the Galaxy Stadium in the city of Jwaneng, Botswana.

Return leg date: 29 September 2023

The second leg, which comes up two weeks later, will take place at the Orlando Stadium in the city of Orlando, Soweto, South Africa.

The winner of the two-legged tie will qualify for the CAF Champions League group stage.

This article was most recently revised and updated 1 year ago

Joseph is a freelance writer who spends most of his time writing engaging football contents. Based in Nigeria, Joseph is a die-hard Real Madrid fan with over 8 years experience in the sports betting space. He has covered football match previews, predictions, and news across leagues in Africa and Europe.