Jose Riveiro, head coach of South African football powerhouse Orlando Pirates, has revealed the emotional toll that losing matches takes on his team.
After two consecutive league losses against Mamelodi Sundowns and Cape Town City, and a further loss in the Soweto Derby against Kaizer Chiefs before the FIFA World Cup break, the Buccaneers turned things around with a 3-1 victory over Golden Arrows.
In a press conference, Riveiro spoke of the responsibility that comes with playing for a team of Pirates’ stature, and the players’ competitiveness throughout the losing run.
“They know who they are, they know where they are playing and we all know we need to do our best because there’s a lot of eyes following us, monitoring us. So we’re in a team that cannot have a break. If we speak about performance, they are good competitors. One of the things we do during the week in almost every exercise, in every scenario, is compete,” he said.
The Spanish mentor went on to explain that he and his players are deeply affected by losses, with the players struggling to sleep and him often skipping meals. “When we don’t win, they don’t sleep.
If I don’t win I don’t have dinner, I don’t have sleep, I don’t have breakfast, I have nothing you know, it’s too much sometimes. And for the players it’s the same even though you can think they don’t care, it’s not true. They suffer and they know what it means to finish the game with three points or not.
They did what you suppose they have to do in these circumstances, go until the end and maybe have more braveness than hopes,” he said.
His coach says he didn’t have a problem with it… What did YOU make of Ntsako Makhubela’s showboating while being 1-0 down to Orlando Pirates? pic.twitter.com/ty2ezflOhz
— iDiski Times (@iDiskiTimes) January 18, 2023
