Cape Town-born players generally take time to settle when they join clubs in Gauteng, which is why Orlando Pirates interim coach Augusto Palacios has called on Bucs supporters to be patient with Abbubaker Mobara and Riyaad Norodien.

Both players were brought in from Ajax Cape Town by ex-Pirates coach Muhsin Ertugral, who had worked with them while in charge of the Mother City-based side.

Mobara, 22, has played at right back, in central defence and in the holding midfield role.

Norodien, 21, meanwhile, has tough competition on the wings and he's not done enough to earn a regular place in the starting line-up.

Norodien has got no goals or assists in his nine appearances this season. Palacios, however, believes the two will find their feet .

"They need some time to adapt to the pressure and responsibilities at Pirates. The pressure at Pirates is not the same as the pressure at other clubs, so I think we should not criticise the Cape Town players.

"Look at [Clayton] Daniels. Look how long it took him to adapt [in Gauteng]. He was at Sundowns and then Celtic and now he is at SuperSport. Some players need time.

"I think also Ayanda [Nkosi], Gift [Motupa], Donald [Makondelela] and Thabiso [Kutumela] need time to adapt to life at Pirates," he said.

Palacios has been hard at training with his players, working on areas which cost them dearly against the likes of Highlands Park, Baroka, Bloemfontein Celtic and Maritzburg towards the end of last year.

"We have been working on finishing and [defending] set pieces. [Tendai] Ndoro has been scoring, but we need more players to score. We will correct this and give confidence to everyone. I hope we can satisfy the supporters," said Palacios confidently.

Pirates are seven points behind leaders SuperSport United, and their first game of 2017 will be against Bidvest Wits on February 3.