‘Boring’ Soweto derby should have ended in draw, says Riveiro

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro has described last Saturday’s Soweto derby clash with Kaizer Chiefs as boring and believes a draw would have been a fair result.

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Pirates lost the match 1-0, thanks to a stunning goal by Chiefs midfielder Yusuf Maart, who caught Siyabonga Mpontshane off his line from his own half of the field in the second half.

“From my point of view, it was a bad game, a 0-0 game and a very slow game. The beginning was played in a manner that we didn’t expect to be played, even from our opponents. I think it was quite boring to be honest, we didn’t manage to be vertical, Chiefs were giving us the space to play outside and defending with numbers in corridors,” said Riveiro.

“We were disconnected in the first half, our build-up, our central midfield and the players upfront. We couldn’t generate much football inside where we are used to doing it and where we are used to create our chances. We only had a chance to go outside, but we were not dangerous enough.”

Riveiro was pleased with the second half performance from Pirates especially after the introduction of Kabelo Dlamini.

“We managed to break possession on the left side, we had more space, but we were too naïve in our attacks. I remember one incident where they managed to go one on one with Mpontshane, that was in the first half. I think we were better in the second half. We changed the formation and the possession of KB (Kabelo Dlamini) gave us a bit more control,” commented Riveiro.