My players were not aggressive enough, says Pirates coach Riveiro

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro says his players were not aggressive enough in their tie with Maritzburg United over the weekend.

ALSO READ: Maritzburg on the spot to pip Pirates

Bucs lost 1-0 to the Team of Choice in a DStv Premiership encounter played at the Harry Gwala Stadium this past Sunday. 

Riveiro believes Pirates could have got a better result had his charges had a lot of aggression to try and unlock the Maritzburg defence. 

The Buccaneers looked lively on the ball with the Soweto giants managing to enjoy most of the ball possession. But, a foul by Olisa Ndah inside the box late in the game was enough to earn the home side maximum points after Amadou Soukouna scored from the winning penalty spot with only 10 minutes left to the end of the game. 

“Like I said the first half we were not aggressive enough in attacking the spaces behind the last line, it was a lack of depth that kept us far from the Maritzburg goal,” Riveiro told SuperSport TV at the end of the game. 

“We corrected the situation well in the second half, so we need to play with more determination in those moments even though sometimes it is not possible, the opponent is also doing their own things well.”
Despite the loss, Riveiro believes the Buccaneers to walk away with at least a point in the game, and says his charges played to their best to try and get a positive result. 

“I have no regrets, I think the guys gave everything one more time. I think we are going with zero points even though we deserve something else tonight.”

Pirates have now played seven games in the league so far, and the loss to the Team of Choice was their second one, having also failed against Chippa United. 

The Soweto giants have also recorded two draws and three wins, which puts them in third place on the league table with 11 points.