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JOHANNESBURG. – Orlando Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro is fired up ahead of today’s Carling Black Label Cup as the Buccaneers seek vengeance.
Riveiro will be taking charge of his second Soweto Derby.
The Spanish tactician knows that a final spot and bragging rights will be at stake.
He wants his charges to put the euphoria of winning the MTN8 aside.
When the Buccaneers take on Amakhosi in a semi-final encounter at FNB Stadium today, they will be looking to avenge last month’s 1-0 loss to arch-rivals in a PSL encounter.
Since then Bucs have played in the 2022 MTN8 final where they secured a 1-0 win over AmaZulu FC last weekend and they have now turned their attention to Chiefs as they return to the scene where they narrowly lost to Amakhosi almost two weeks ago, FNB Stadium.
Riveiro made it clear that their game against Chiefs will just be as intense as other derbies. He wants to put the euphoria of winning the MTN8 aside this weekend as they look to improve week in and week out.
“Did Pirates and Chiefs ever play a friendly game in history? I don’t think so. It’s a competition, not a friendly [match]. So, we’ll take it seriously,” Riveiro told the media.
“We’ll try to be competitive. I can tell you, we don’t play any game thinking about what’s going to happen if we lose. We don’t think about losing.
“We think about enjoying the day, competing, and doing everything we have to win. But if we lose, we lose. We won’t play the final, and we’ll move on,” he explained.
“We are still proud of our last achievement together this season. Obviously, we’d like to go from game to game after a win.
“The mood and motivation are high. We still want to improve, not everything is done. And this weekend is another opportunity for us to improve more,” he added.
“Hopefully we can play two beautiful games against top teams in a beautiful venue and learn from the games. We’d like to play such games every week.”
Pirates are coming into the Carling Black Label Cup in buoyant mood after winning the MTN8 trophy — ending their two-year trophy drought in the process. — Goal.com
Online Reporter