Pirates coach Jose Riveiro’s biggest worry after Carling Cup defeat

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro has expressed his biggest concern after his team’s showing at the Carling Black Label Cup. The Buccaneers failed to score in open play against Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns in Saturday’s Carling Cup.

Riveiro’s men beat their arch-rivals Kaizer Chiefs on penalties in the semi-final of the newly introduced cup competition. The Soweto derby had ended 0-0 in regulation time.

It is in this one that Riveiro felt his charges could have scored, considering their dominance in terms of possession.

Pirates then succumbed to a 4-0 defeat by Sundowns in the final. That result gave him a good measure of his team’s pedigree.

JOSE RIVEIRO PERSPECTIVE

“The two games we played are totally different. In the first game, we had possession most of the time though I didn’t check the numbers.

“We played against a team that was playing a low block. So we had to be the team who makes the initiative.

“We spent much time on the ball. But still, we didn’t manage to create so much to evaluate the players you consider your strikers,” he said.

The Spaniard, however, admitted that the circumstances were different when they faced the relentless Mamelodi Sundowns.

“The second game was a different story. We knew the circumstances, especially against a team like Mamelodi Sundowns.

“We knew they will be the ones dominating with the ball, so the participation of our strikers was different. We asked different things from them.

“My obligation now is to evaluate the strikers in different circumstances, not only because we didn’t score,” he added.

This one was the first edition of the Carling Cup, with four teams voted by fans to compete. Originally the tie was restricted to Chiefs and Pirates at the start of every season. Fans reserved the right to vote for their favourite stars to play.

Mamelodi Sundowns’ Cassius Mailula was the cut above the rest with a brace in the final.

The other two goals were scored by Sphelele Mkhulise and Grant Kekana to seal Mamelodi Sundowns’ first Carling Cup