Jose Riveiro outlines Orlando Pirates' intentions in the MTN 8
By Neo Poho
Orlando Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro believes they would still be under pressure to dispatch Sekhukhune United in the MTN 8 quarter-final clash even if they were not the defending champions.
Pirates face Sekhukhune United in the second MTN 8 quarter-final fixture on Saturday the 12th of August 2023 at the Orlando Stadium.
“Every time we go onto the field we carry the history of the club and the expectations of our fans, so for us it’s a must to go into every game with the intention to win, maybe that’s what you call pressure in this case but it’s a positive pressure because we are representing a big club and it is in us that we are competitive and we want to go through to the next round.
The expectations are high because its a knockout game, so that influences the behaviour of the teams because you know that it’s either you go forward or you go home, Sekhukhune are a well-organised team and they can manage different ways of playing during the game so its very uncomfortable to play against them, we know it and it’s not going to be an exception on Saturday, but we are prepared," Riveiro said.
Meanwhile the Sea Robbers' captain, Innocent Maela has backed the Buccaneers to head into the competition with the mindset of defending the title.
"Another MTN 8 campaign starting this season and this means we have to go out there as a team and make sure that we perform to the best of our ability.
We have been preparing very well and as defending champions we have to be brave, courageous and give it our best shot because there is a lot of pressure however, as a team it would really mean a lot for us to be able to defend this title," Maela added.
Kick-off at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday evening is 18:00 o'clock.
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