Sirino Determined To Make History At Chiefs

Kaizer Chiefs attacking midfielder Gaston Sirino has set his sights on making history at Naturena with the Nedbank Cup final against fierce rivals Orlando Pirates at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday looming.

The Uruguayan talisman switched Chloorkop for Naturena in August 2024 after his contract with Mamelodi Sundowns was not renewed at the end of last season, ending a six-year stay with the South African champions.

Since joining Amakhosi, Sirino has featured in 23 matches across all competitions, scoring three goals and providing six assists in the process as he has established himself as an ever-present figure in his debut season with the Glamour Boys.

Now, the 34-year-old forward has explained why he opted to sign for Chiefs, stating that his decision was fueled by the endless opportunity of more playing time, in addition to his never-ending desire to compete for and lift major trophies.

“Of course, I’m here to play more because at Sundowns the competition is very high, but I’m here to win trophies. Saturday is a good opportunity to win the Nedbank Cup, so of course I want to fight for the team,” Sirino said.

“It’s difficult, but Saturday is a good opportunity to fight for the trophy. Of course, it’s a final, it’s one game, it’s the last game of the Nedbank Cup. Of course, we need to fight and push ourselves for a win because the quality of the players here is [good].

“Sometimes we play well, but we don’t win, or the result is not good, but Saturday is a different game. Of course, we need to win. We played good in too many games, but we lost. It’s the reality, but maybe we need more focus, more professionalism when we score, because sometimes, we score and relax the game. So, we need to push more in these couple of games [remaining].” 

Sirino went on to further state his intentions to make history with Amakhosi by helping the club end its decade-long trophy drought in a match he believes will be special for Nasreddine Nabi’s side. Moreover, the forward is adamant that they were better than the Buccaneers last weekend in the league match at FNB Stadium.

“I want to make history here, so Saturday is a good opportunity [to make history]. It’s a good opportunity for many players here to win the Nedbank Cup. Of course, I already won the Nedbank Cup, but Saturday is a special day for us, the next game is a special game for everyone,” said Sirino, who scored the winner when Sundowns beat Bloemfontein Celtic in the final in the 2019/20 season at Orlando Stadium.

“We played better than them [Pirates on Saturday], but we lost, so we need to push more, we need to focus more, we need to anticipate and control the game more, especially when we score. But it’s football, sometimes we play good but we lose.

“The final is a different game, of course it’s one game, but I think we are prepared this week to win the final.” 

Having won 11 trophies with Sundowns, including seven league titles and two Nedbank Cup titles, Sirino has accumulated a vast amount of experience in terms of winning silverware, and Nabi will undoubtedly count on him to steer the team to glory.