Cape Town - Orlando Pirates coach Milutin 'Micho' Sredojevic believes the players are still lacking confidence following what was a disastrous 2016/17 season for the club.
Aside from finishing outside of the Premiership's top eight for the first time, the Buccaneers also suffered some humiliating defeats to the likes of Mamelodi Sundowns and SuperSport United.
Micho, who took over from Kjell Jonevret at the start of the current campaign, has started his career at Mayfair encouragingly as Pirates find themselves second in the league with two wins and a draw.
Despite this, the Serbian believes there are still some lessons to learn, telling reporters after Tuesday's 1-0 league win over Ajax Cape Town: "The ghost of the past is still present with us‚ it is chasing us still.
"But we want to chase away that ghost to be able to play a different way.
"However, it is deep in the mind of the players and they are cautious when they have a lead‚ naturally retreating back to protect this small credit.
"The ghost of the past comes from the fact that this team has conceded so many goals in the last minutes of games.
"We have to work hard and make sure we have the game wrapped up long before the end."
Meanwhile, the Buccaneers return to action on Tuesday, September 19 when they welcome Cape Town City FC.
Kick off is at 19:30.