‘They are the present champions and we are all wishing to be there,’ stated Riveiro.
Orlando Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro is adamant that the team to beat this season is Mamelodi Sundowns, although Masandawana will begin the new season with a change of head coach.
Pirates completed second in final season’s Betway Premiership, some 23 factors behind Sundowns, although they did additionally win the MTN8 and Nedbank Cup for the second successive season, beating Masandawana in each finals.
The Buccaneers even have Riveiro as head coach for a 3rd successive season, whereas Rulani Mokwena left Sundowns and joined Wydad Casablanca as head coach. Manqoba Mngqithi has taken over as interim head coach, a transfer that actually brings loads of continuity at Choorklop.
Pirates start their quest for a 3rd MTN8 title in a row on Saturday after they host SuperSport United at Orlando Stadium in the quarterfinals.
‘We must be humble’
“The team to beat is Sundowns, they are the current champions and we are all wishing to be there,” stated Riveiro.
“They are the ones everyone wants to beat. We must be humble, the level of the task is not easy.”
When pressed on how Pirates would possibly catch Sundowns in the title race this season, Riveiro most well-liked to deal with the activity at hand – beating SuperSport in the MTN8 on Saturday.
“We are about to play SuperSport in a quarterfinal, and it is not about the league right now,” stated Riveiro.
“Our ambition is to compete in each sport, for each trophy. In the cups now we have been aggressive in each sport, that’s the reason now we have performed now in the final 4 finals of the MTN8 and Nedbank Cup.
“Our ambition is to manage to be competitive in every game in the league, but right now we are busy with the MTN8 and we have to focus on this next knockout game.”
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