Orlando Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro says his side’s 2-1 win over CR Belouizdad in their CAF Champions League group stage opener will make his squad a better team.
Pirates beat the Algerian giants with Mohau Nkota bagging a brace, while Bafana Bafana forward Khanyisa Mayo scored for the home side, his first goal for the club since his record $850,000 transfer from Cape Town City in the off-season.
In what was Riveiro’s debut at this stage of Africa’s elite club competition, and the majority of his squad, he feels it’s an experience that will help mature his crop of players who have won the MTN8 and currently lead the league in South Africa.
“We knew the rhythm of the game would be different from the other competitions we’ve played this season, we prepared ourselves for that, we were good in the first half, not just because of the goals, but also the proposal, I think we were brave,” Riveiro said.
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“That was the intention, we came here with looking for our graduation in this competition against an experienced team, an experienced coach as well. I think after this 90 minutes of full intensity, we are a much better team after this 90 minutes than before.
“It’s a result and performance to grow as a team and keep going, it’s just the beginning, three points is a fantastic way to start the group stage, so yeah – extremely proud of our boys tonight.”
Pirates notably were on the backfoot in the second half, and the Spaniard denied to Algerian media that he set out to have contrasting styles of play in the game, stating they had to adapt as CRB came with waves of attacks in an attempt to get back into the game.
“It was not our intention to defend low [in the second half] and say no to our normal possession game, but I think Belouizdad was throwing the kitchen [sink] in the second half, looking for a goal to get close to at least fight for one point,” he explained.
“I think they did a fantastic job in the second half, it’s a team with a lot of quality and I think we managed to grow – within the second half, the second 45 minutes we concede one goal in one set-piece.
“But I think with the ball in movement, we managed to control and only give them the opportunities to go to the sides for crosses and cut-backs, but I think we didn’t suffer so much besides that fact that they were in control of possession in the second half.
“We didn’t have moments to breathe, to keep the ball in sequences of more than six, seven, eight passes to get a little bit of control. It was not our intention to play defensively, the reason was the opponent pushing with everything being 2-0 down, it’s normal that the performances for both teams changed in the second half.”
Pirates will host Stellenbosch on Sunday before welcoming African champions Al Ahly to Orlando Stadium on Saturday, 7 December.
