Benni McCarthy praised Orlando Pirates in the midst of Cape Town City’s 1-0 victory against them in a Nedbank Cup last-16 clash on Wednesday night.

Ayanda Patosi’s solitary strike at the Cape Town Stadium sealed the Citizens’ passage to the Nedbank Cup quarter-finals.

Benni was chuffed with his side’s victory and cited their preparation as key to the win; however, the Bafana Bafana all-time top-scorer was full of praise for Pirates, saying that they are the closest team that can challenge Mamelodi Sundowns for the Absa Premiership title.

‘It is an incredible morale booster because Pirates are on a high, they are a great team,’ he said in post-match comments.

‘You see the way that they played against Chiefs, they were amazing.

‘We had to really plan carefully, but I think the game gave us an indication of how they played against Chippa.

‘We tried to exploit where they weren’t so good because when they are coming for you, and they always attack with four or five players going forward, it leaves them vulnerable behind. The fullbacks go quite high up.

‘We tried to get our players in those spaces and we wanted to have numbers in the box. I think that’s exactly how the goal came. We surprised them.

‘It was a very tough game, Pirates are a fantastic team. The coach has done a sterling job with them. They are so well organised, very well structured.

‘I think that they are the biggest contenders for the league and I wish them all the best. They are a magnificent team.

‘At the end of the day, luck was on our side and we managed to get the one chance to put it in the back of the net and came out victorious.

‘There are a lot of positives to take from this game and we will kick on from here,’ he concluded.

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