Riveiro: Why Not Finish On Top Of The Group
Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro was left pleased with the applications of his team in their victory against CR Belouizdad at Orlando Stadium on Sunday even though they didn’t have enough time to prepare for the game.
The Buccaneers beat Belouizdad 2-1 with goals by Relebohile Mofokeng and Thalente Mbatha’s thundering strike to reach the quarterfinal of this season’s CAF Champions League.
However, Riveiro’s side only had three days to prepare for this game as they played a league game on Tuesday, losing 1-0 to Cape Town City in Cape Town.
“I’m happy when we celebrate together as a team because this victory and this performance didn’t come for free, the guys worked very hard,” Riveiro said.
“The elements sometimes to perform the way we did today, not focusing on the results because most of the time we win, but it’s not easy to perform this way while we had three days to train.
“We are happy with the results and the performance. If we win no problem, it’s not about being proud of what we are doing together as a team because this is just half of the season.
“But we are going to the quarterfinal now, that’s a fact and the team is doing very well.”
Pirates will now visit Al Ahly in Cairo on Saturday in the last game of the group stage. The Buccaneers are sitting top with 11 points, while The Red Devils are in position number two with 10 points and both these two teams are already in the quarterfinal.
Riveiro concluded that his side has an opportunity to finish as the log leaders in their group. “Why not? We have an opportunity to go there and compete, and win one more game,” Riveiro said.
“In the magnificent scenario, we have an opportunity to lead the group at the end of the game. So, that’s a lot of components to keep our motivation very high.
“To be competitive with our team in this competition we need our best performance all the time. If we are not 100% in Cairo, is not going to be a good day for us.
“We have to make sure that we go with the right mentality and ambition to collect points there, and why not finish the group leading it.”
