Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro admits he knows little about Djabal Club, who they visit in the preliminary round of the CAF Champions League on Saturday.
Pirates, unlike league champions Mamelodi Sundowns, were not exempted from the first round, having missed out on the playing in Africa competition last season completely.
This after they finished sixth in the DStv Premiership in the 2021/22 season, a season where they lost in the CAF Confederation Cup final on penalty shootouts to Moroccan side RS Berkane.
Pirates are back in the Champions League after finishing second last term, but Riveiro, who this will be his first experience in CAF club competition, says he knows little about the Comoros side who they will face at Stade de Moroni on Saturday (14:30).
“Not so much,” Riveiro said in short, having been reluctant to talk about the game.
While Pirates coach has little knowledge about Djabal, it is not that team that is not new in the face of Pirates.
Pirates crushed Djabal in the 2013 edition in the Champions League, winning 9-0 on aggregate also in the first round.
As that kickstarted their season, the Soweto giants went all the way to the final, only to lose to the Egyptian giants Al Ahly 3-1 on aggregate score.
Pirates, by the end of this month, would have played eight matches which will test the Soweto giants squad depth, who will host the second leg at Orlando Stadium on 25 August.
“We have the opportunity to refresh the squad, the starting eleven,” said Riveiro when asked how he will approach this game if other players are going to be left behind and give others a chance.
“So we need to discuss and decide how much we need to do. As I explained many times, we don’t believe in rotation as a strategy, we believe in rotation when it is a moment to do the rotation when the player needs a rotation.
“For sure we are going to play a different kind of game in a different type of environment and there are going to be a lot of adjustments.”
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Pirates last featured in the Champions League was in the 2019/20 season, losing to Nigeria side Green Eagles in the preliminary round.
