Pirates’ Riveiro wary of Pyramids threat ahead of Cairo clash

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro says the disallowed goals of Pyramids FC was warning that the Buccaneers need to defend better if they are to overcome the Egyptian side and reach the final of the CAF Champions League.

Pyramids had two goals disallowed by VAR when the sides met in the first leg of the semifinal at the FNB Stadium on Saturday.

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The VAR ruled Fiston Mayele’s first half strike offside and it also ruled Sodiq Awujoola’s deflected goal a handball.

The VAR decisions left Krunoslav Jurcic livid and the Pyramids coach blasted the match officials after the match, He also insinuated that they made questionable calls during the game.

“I want to say that I’m really proud of my team, we played a good match, but I’m disappointed because we scored two goals. For me the score is 2-0,” Jurčić said.

Riveiro, however, disagreed with him, saying the officials made correct calls.

“I understand the frustration of the opponent. But I’m sure that once they get the opportunity to check the actions carefully, they’ll realise that the referee was right,” said Riveiro.

Riveiro has warned his charges to do better, especially when it comes to defending set-pieces, after the Buccaneers defence allowed two goals.

“Yes, it was a warning to us, especially the second one (goal) to try and do better when defending corner kicks and set-pieces. We’ll try to analyse and do better next time,” said Riveiro.

Riveiro wary of ‘difficult’ Pyramids

Riveiro expects another tough encounter when the teams meet at 30 June Stadium on Friday.

“They’re the most difficult team we’ve faced this season so far. For me, they’re a brave team. They’re a team that is playing this competition without fear and they’re not showing any sign of being under pressure.

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“The fact that no team scored means that it’s not going to be an easy game for us in Egypt on Friday and it’s not going to be an easy game for Pyramids as well. We can expect a very interesting second leg and trust me, we’ll do everything we can to make it possible [to reach the final] and if we fail, we’ll go to the next one with the same mentality of trying to win it,” concluded Riveiro.