Pirates coach Riveiro happy with improvements upfront ahead of Sundowns clash

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro is excited that his side seem to have overcome their goal drought ahead of the crucial clash against Mamelodi Sundowns, but he is cautious of getting carried away.

The Buccaneers travel to Polokwane to take on Masandawana in the MTN8 semi-final second leg at Peter Mokaba Stadium on Saturday (3.30pm).

The first leg in Orlando Stadium ended in a goalless draw in what was probably Pirates’ best performance against Sundowns in a long time.

This season under coach Riveiro, the Bucs have played exciting football, but the only let down has been the way they perform in front of goals.   

On Tuesday Pirates showed improvements in that department when they defeated Golden Arrows by 2-0, thanks to a brace by Monnapule Saleng assisted by Kermit Erasmus on both occasions.

Before that Pirates had managed only a single goal from four outings.

“We are looking to improve from every game we play, we can say we have improved in front of the goals because we scored two times after we hadn’t scored in recent games,” Riveiro said.

“We would like to continue with the same dynamic. Obviously the more we score the boys will gain more confidence for the future.”

While Saleng and Erasmus look to be a perfect combination for the Bucs upfront so far, Riveiro, who likes to play cards closer to his chest, gave a hint that the two forwards will be used together going forward.

“Last time we played with Saleng and Erasmus, let’s see who is there on Saturday and whoever is there hopefully can do the job. It’s not only about the strikers, it’s about everybody else,” Riveiro said.

“We are happy with what we managed to produce in our last match against Arrows, but Saturday is a new chapter and we start again.”

Despite having a home clean sheet ahead of the second leg, Riveiro believes no team is at an advantage.  

“The away goal can be an important factor at the end of the game, but we need to score. There’s no advantage for anyone so far,” he said.

“Once we score, there will be an advantage for us with the double value of the goal, it can be relevant in the end of the game, but at this moment it’s 0-0.”

The winner of the tie will either meet AmaZulu FC or Kaizer Chiefs in the climax of the tournament scheduled for Moses Mabhida Stadium on November 5.