Orlando Pirates defender Innocent Maela admits the Buccaneers had to dig deep to claim maximum points against Bloemfontein Celtic on Wednesday.

The Buccaneers kept the pressure on log leaders Mamelodi Sundowns after claiming a 2-1 win over Celtic with Musa Nyatama and Augustine Mulenga finding the net to cancel out Lorenzo Gordinho’s 47th-minute goal.

Maela says he is happy with the win, but he admits his side had to work hard to claim all three points against Celtic.

‘It wasn’t an easy game. We knew that we had to fight hard for the three points. But I’m glad that [we] were victorious,’ Maela told SuperSport TV after the game.

‘We knew that they were going to come at us and we knew they are coming here with no pressure. We knew that the pressure is on us, but I’m happy that we fought hard.

‘Sometimes it’s not easy. It’s not about playing good football. It’s about digging deep and making sure you come away with three points.

‘It helped us a lot because it gave us courage, belief and we knew we had a 60 percent chance of going all the way and winning this game.’

Pirates will next take on SuperSport United in their next Absa Premiership encounter at the Mbombela Stadium on Wednesday, with kick-off set for 6pm.