Orlando Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro says he felt no added pressure after the Soweto Derby defeat to Kaizer Chiefs.
In what was a dire affair devoid of quality befitting for an occasion where the country is at a standstill to enjoy the most-watched fixture in South African football, it was separated by an Olisa Ndah own goal in the final moments at the clash at FNB Stadium.
Chiefs celebrated the win over Riveiro’s outfit and with Amakhosi supporters calling for Zwane’s head prior, their moving level on points with their fierce rivals in the DStv Premiership brought about questions about the Pirates technical team and whether they should be scrutinised further.
“No, to be honest, no, we are not in a bad moment, we are in a good moment,” Riveiro said when asked by iDiski Times if the Soweto Derby defeat against the under-fire Arthur Zwane increased pressure at the club.
“The last game was bad, we couldn’t play [well], for reasons we already analysed, we’ve tried to find solutions, we weren’t ourselves.
“So that’s probably a heavy weight during the week [leading to Swallows], as I said many times, if you play only for the result and you don’t get the result – there’s nothing.”
The former FC Inter Turku coach who’s preached most of the season about the identity and philosophy he’s trying to implement for sustained success at the club was reiterated once more – as he believes they are making major strides, despite being level with Chiefs.
Third-placed Pirates trail league leaders Mamelodi Sundowns by 22 points but could still pip SuperSport United to the final CAF Champions League spot, with a five-point deficit going into the final eight games of the league campaign.
“If you try to do it in a certain way, you can always feel you’re in the right [direction], the result will come – but it wasn’t the case last week, we didn’t play in the standards and levels we’re looking for,” he added.
“But pressure? No, obviously when you lose one game, the most important thing is to get a win as soon as possible, because if you don’t come focused and concentrated, you won’t get points then it’s two [defeats] in a row.
“So when you’re working for a club like Pirates, the mandate to win every week is there – but pressure, no. Not on me personally as a coach, not at all.”
Pirates will now turn their attention to the Nedbank Cup last-16 where they face Motsepe Foundation Championship side Venda Football Academy.
