Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro says they played better when they lost to Stellenbosch FC on Saturday than when they hammered Royal AM 4-2 on Tuesday night.
Riveiro was reacting after they got back to winning ways with an emphatic victory over the KZN club, after a rather unimpressive start when they were nailed 1-0 by Stellies. Pirates had a fancy off-season camp in Spain and played tough friendly matches against big teams – so, a lot is expected from them this season. And Riveiro too is under pressure to win more trophies after he lifted two, in his maiden season.
“We need to impose ourselves on our opponents,” Riveiro told Supersport TV crew after Tuesday’s win. “Today we had the opportunity to score four goals and to finish the game off. But there was a good reaction from our opponents after 3-0 lead.
“We played much better in the weekend (1-0 loss Stellenbosch FC) than today (against Royal AM). Against Royal AM we were more accurate with the opportunities we created – but we not in full control as much as I would like, we were just dangerous in transitions because we defended low. And our forwards are very good when they have space to run. We are happy with the three points, but there’s still room to improve,” he added.
“As a coach, we want to see a game where we are in full control. But for the fans it was a good, entertaining show with the ball going from side to side. I am happy for the fans. The fans are very important for the club, we need to capitalise on the foundation that we have, because we want to see more numbers in the stadium. The ones that are coming are pushing us all the way, but there is still space for more supporters and hopefully after scoring four goals, we will get more supporters to come,” Riveiro explained further.
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