Cape Town City to face much improved Orlando Pirates side – Jose Riveiro

This is the view held by Pirates coach Jose Riveiro, whose charges have registered eight victories out of their last 10 games in all competitions. 

Riveiro says they’ve dealt with their shortcomings from that January encounter. 

"Even though we lost, we all agreed that we played a good game there. Just small details, sometimes it happens in football, it's not enough that you dominate, you need to be accurate on both sides of the field, and that day were we not. But we found a way to be more competitive," he said.

The Spaniard is aware of the magnitude of the game in the context of chasing the runners-up spot behind champions Mamelodi Sundowns. 

If Pirates end in second place they qualify for the Caf Champions League. 

"We both need the points for different targets at this moment. Who knows in two/three games where we are going to be, maybe we will be fighting for the same position. So far, I think it's going to be a difficult game. Cape Town is an excellent squad, well organised, well coached," he added.

Asked by SABC Sport for his opinion on their bitter rivals Kaizer Chiefs celebrating their draw in the Nedbank Cup quarterfinals next month, Riveiro deflected to rather focusing on facing City on Saturday. 

"No, I just think about the next fixture. It's a very difficult and important game for us. We are only concentrating on it; we don't want to lose our focus in the moment. We need to learn to deal with two competitions at the same time because it's going to be very important for us in the future," he concluded.