- Riveiro proves his doubters wrong
- Pirates claim second trophy this season
- Riveiro talks about his day-to-day at Bucs
WHAT HAPPENED: Orlando Pirates bagged a second title on Saturday night when they beat Sekhukhune United 2-1 to add the Nedbank Cup next to the MTN8 in their trophy cabinet.
Pirates head coach, Jose Riveiro certainly won the hearts of the Happy People and when giving his post-match comments to SuperSport TV after the game, he shed a tear, presumably reflecting on the cold reception that he received when he arrived in Mzansi. The Spaniard was called a plumber, which is a football term to describe a useless coach.
However, he has kept a diary of day-to-day activities at the club and now breaks down his success in numbers and how he achieved two cup wins and a second-place finish in the Premier Soccer League, which takes Bucs back to the Caf Champions League.
WHAT WAS SAID: "Thank you to my players one more time. Thank you to the coaching staff. We finished today with 39 official games in the season and 223 training sessions in 11 months, so it's not by chance and it's not because of just me. We always try to do our best, we have bad days and we have better days," Riveiro told members of the media.
PENALTY OR NO PENALTY?: The tie had all the makings of a cup final and there was no lack of controversy. The man in the middle, referee Thando Ndzandzeka had not awarded a penalty the whole season, and he made a penalty call that will be spoken about in the taxis and offices on Monday. Thembinkosi Lorch won a penalty for Bucs where Victor Letsoalo was adjudged to have handled the ball while he was on the ground, in what looked as though he went down injured.
Sekhukhune's bench was infuriated while the Buccaneers jumped for joy when Tapelo Xoki converted the penalty to level matters for Pirates. However, when asked about the incident, Riveiro said he did not have the best of views from the dugout.
"From my position on the bench, there's nothing I can say. I have seen a player on the grass. I don't know exactly what happened. But I've seen a picture where the player is touching the ball deliberately with his hand. But I didn't have the opportunity to watch the [replay," under a separate heading:
WHAT"S NEXT?: Riveiro will begin his plans for pre-season and look forward to putting on a challenge against Mamelodi Sundowns in the league. But now before a well-deserved break.
"It is not easy to do what you love in a different country. For me to be here, the learning process was difficult and things were not easy from the start. So yeah, I am looking forward to resting but it's not going to be too long. It's going to be longer for the players, they deserve it," said Riveiro.
