Johannesburg - Even though his side were beaten 4-0 by Sundowns in the final of the Carling Black Label Cup on Saturday, Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro saw positives in the performance of his side.
The Spaniard believes that fatigue got to his side which effectively ended the game in the first half. However, he was happy with the fighting spirit that they showed.
Pirates' hopes of gaining anything from the game were ended after 21 minutes as Tapelo Xoki was red-carded.
“We were one player less for most of the game. It was impossible to come back into the game in the second half. I was happy with the players and how they fought despite us being a man down. They fought even despite the numerical inferiority,” said Riveiro.
Riveiro added that he would have done nothing different had he had an opportunity to redo his team selection again.
“The beginning of the game was slow. We knew that it would take time for us to start working again after the break. We got a red-card and there was an excellent team in front of us.
“They took advantage of the situation. After that, I think the game was 50/50. I did not see much difference between the two teams apart from that 5-10 minutes in the first half. We played a fantastic game against Chiefs. The final is what it is,” said Riveiro.
Pirates will return to action on New Years Day for a league clash against Sundowns at Loftus Versfeld.
IOL Sport