The custodian’s inconsistency has been singled out as his major undoing during his first season with Bucs
Retired goalkeeper Aime Kitenge has questioned Richard Ofori’s ability to be a top goalkeeper for Orlando Pirates.
Kitenge said he was not convinced by the Ghanaian’s first season at Pirates and suggested the Premier Soccer League giants need a goalkeeper who will remain on top of his game on a regular basis.
“His consistency has been an issue, so I am not convinced,” Kitenge told KickOff.com.
“When you play for a team like the Pirates, you should be consistent and that means you have to deliver top-notch performances in every game that you play.
“As a foreign goalkeeper at Pirates, they expect you to be extraordinary. You need to know the weight of Pirates is heavy, being the big team that they are. So, as a keeper, you must stay alert and perform.
“Pirates is not a team where you can have a goalkeeper who performs well in one game and in the next, they don’t. You can not be a hero in one game and then go on to make mistakes in the next couple of games and end up becoming a zero.”
Kitenge, who spent over a decade in the PSL, named Williams Okpara as the stand-out goalkeeper for the Soweto giants at the time.
“Pirates need a goalkeeper who will always stay on top of his game. [Williams] Okpara remains the only keeper who was consistent enough at the Pirates to earn the legendary status that he now enjoys at the club,” he added.
“Whenever we played Pirates with Okpara in goal, I always knew that they had a man who made the difference for them in the goal. That Pirates jersey needs a brave keeper who will carry the team on his shoulders on most occasions.”
He further suggested the Ghanaian needs to be on top of his game more regularly since as a foreigner he is always expected to be better than his local rivals.
“Ofori needs to stamp his authority more than he has done,” he concluded.
“Pirates are not a place to try out a keeper who is not extraordinary. You have to be above the rest as a foreign keeper.
“Cape Town City were able to find a top keeper [Peter Leeuwenburgh] for all those years but why are Pirates not able to get such quality?”
Mamelodi Sundowns’ Denis Onyango has been a standout foreign played and was named the goalkeeper of the season the concluded campaign, in which was his eighth title-winning season in South Africa.
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