Despite a gritty 1-0 victory over ten-man Magesi FC that brought Orlando Pirates within three points of league leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, coach Jose Riveiro criticized the state of the pitch.
The match was played under challenging conditions at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, which had been hastily converted from hosting a music concert by Makhadzi to a football pitch.
Relebohile Mofokeng scored a stunning goal, the only one of the match, which came after Magesi’s Wonderboy Makhubo missed a penalty just before halftime. Despite their recent 8-1 triumph over Marumo Gallants FC on Christmas Eve, The Buccaneers faced a stern test in Polokwane.
Post-match, Pirates’ coach Jose Riveiro expressed his frustration with the playing surface. “Important three points, massive in very difficult circumstances, probably people cannot appreciate how difficult it is to play football here,” Riveiro said.
He highlighted the pitch’s condition, stating, “It’s not a football pitch, I can say it now that we won. Because I would not be complaining because of the result, it was tough for both teams, you can see the players when they finished, you have 15 players on their knees, that’s how tough it is to play here.”
Riveiro didn’t hold back on his sarcastic take on the situation, “And it was not good enough for a concert a couple of weeks ago but it’s good enough to play a football match and that’s why I think the performance from both teams was not a good spectacle but like I said, we came here with the intention to get three points and we did it, massive result for us.”
The Buccaneers will now turn their attention back to continental action when they host Stade d’Abidjan in the CAF Champions League at Orlando Stadium on Saturday evening.
This match will test their adaptability and resilience, attributes they’ve shown in overcoming the substandard pitch conditions against Magesi.