Smiso Msomi
Orlando Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro has defended his side’s performance in their recent defeat where they relinquishing their unbeaten tag in the league to Stellenbosch at home.
The Buccaneers suffered their first loss in the Betway Premiership, with a Devin Titus first half striker deciding the game, ending a run of seven successive wins. Speaking after the game at the Orlando Stadium, the Spanish-born mentor felt his side lost undeservedly but applauded Stellies for a combative showing.
“It was the game we expected. We had a good start to the match, a good 15, 10 minutes, with opportunities through (Thabiso) Monyane and (Deon) Hotto in the box,” he said.
“They threatened early in the match, as we planned to do. We didn’t capitalise. It was difficult to play advantage in the central corridors, as the field was extremely dry as usual in the daytime – we weren’t precise enough in (those areas).
He further added: “They found Titus in a transition and he finished the action really well to make it 1-0. We tried everything we could. We had good chances to equalise, to not get away with zero points, it wasn't a zero point performance.
“But as I said many times, it’s a scoring game. They scored one goal, we didn’t – it’s three points for Stellenbosch. They fought in an incredible way for every action, for every meter and in the end they get three points; no dramas, nobody is invincible.
“We got our first defeat in the league and now it’s time to recover and start again. We have a big game on Saturday (against Al Ahly) and we are now prepare for that – nothing else, we keep going.”
The loss did not only see Pirates’ record run come to a halt but also dropped the Sea Robbers to second on the league standings, level on points with defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns but behind due to an inferior goal difference.
Riveiro, a calm character, refused to let any sense of anxiety seep into the camp, after having let the Brazilians go above them on the standings. He insisted that it is too early to make any reservations on the league championship, whilst there is still a big chunk of the season left to play
“We have the same amount of points, exactly the same – we lost, they lost to Polokwane City a few weeks ago. We have the same amount of points, so we have to run our race, that’s it,” he explained.
“We played against Stellenbosch, not Mamelodi Sundowns. We’re competing against Sundowns, Stellenbosch, Kaizer Chiefs, Golden Arrows, everybody ... it’s three points (on offer) in every game.
“It’s only been eight (games). I know we are in December, we should have maybe 15 or 20 games already played in the league, that is why you are a little bit anxious with this question..
Pirates will now turn their attention to continental football as they welcome current African champions Al Ahly to the Orlando Stadium on Saturday in a massive CAF Championship fixture.