Why Pirates coach Riveiro was a happy man despite defeat to Sundowns

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro has revealed why he was a happy man despite losing one nil to Mamelodi Sundowns at home on Saturday in a DStv Premiership encounter.

Pirates took the game from the first whistle to their opponents, Sundowns fighting toe-to-toe.

However, they were unlucky to lose with a slender scoreline as they couldn’t convert their chances at Orlando Stadium.

The narrow defeat saw Pirates’ four-match winning run end, whilst Sundowns extended their impressive streak to 15 consecutive victories.

HOW ORLANDO PIRATES PERFORMANCED

According to Riveiro, he was satisfied by the performance of his charges as Pirates dominated possession during the entire match.

“The game was absolutely dominated by Orlando Pirates in every scenario,” Riveiro told the media.

“I think in the first half, we were also dominating the situation quite well; we were not lucky in those situations.

“Second half, Sundowns started well, but I think the game was totally for us.

“Unfortunately, we couldn’t capitalise, especially from 55 to 70 minutes in the second half.

“If I’m not mistaken today we had 60% possession.

“I don’t know when was the last time that Sundowns lost possession against one team PSL.”

RIVEIRO’S BOLD CLAIM

Riveiro further made a bold claim about their performance on Saturday. He described the match as Pirates’ best they’ve played against Sundowns this campaign.

“The way Pirates played, it makes me feel we’re very optimistic, we’re very positive. In future if we play in this level we not going to lose points this season,” he declared.

“It’s the fourth game if I count Carling Cup, it’s probably the best game we’ve played against them.

“But we couldn’t get the result. Considering the level of our opponents, it’s their 15th game in a row that these guys win in a different environment.

WHAT RIVEIRO WAS NOT HAPPY ABOUT

The Spanish mentor further revealed one aspect he was not happy about in the match.

“Not so happy with the end of the game, I think we should have been organised in the last part of the match.

“We not happy about the result don’t get me wrong, but I think the performance of Orlando Pirates players was outstanding,” he added.

The victory saw the Tshwane giants in increase their lead at the summit of the table to 23 points from second placed SuperSport United.

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