Jose Riveiro credits Moroka Swallows for Tshegofatso Mabasa’s Golden Boot

Mabasa netted 16 times this season, with six goals in 13 matches coming during his six-month stint at Swallows, before he continued his form with 10 goals in 13 matches for the Buccaneers. 

After scoring his final goal against SuperSport United in their league finale, Riveiro reiterated that Mabasa is more than just a goal scorer.

"I think Mabasa is much more than the goals, like I've said several time [before]. He's had a really good impact on the group, contributing in every moment of the game – defending, attacking, set-pieces," said Riveiro.

"He was a very important player for us in the second half of the season, always available for selection and he's now getting the rewards of the hard work that he probably put in in the first half of the season at Swallows.

"So overall it's been a really good season for him, and hopefully he can replicate this type of performances in the future for us at Pirates."

Another player earning special praise from Riveiro is former AmaZulu captain Makhehleni Makhaula, who played 18 matches in all competitions this season and showed significant growth in his first campaign with Pirates, according to Riveiro.

"He has an important role for us – everybody knows Makhaula has become the type of player he is now for Pirates little by little, and he's a little bit more complete as well," he added.

"Maybe he was labelled a defensive midfielder before, but now he's trying to be more complete [box-to-box] and he's helping us a lot with and without the ball.

"He's an honest player, a true professional, so an important part of the group – one of our senior players, and when Makhaula is performing well, it's usually a symptom of the team doing well as well. He also deserves sometimes a little bit of your [media] attention too."

READ: Riveiro promising a better showing in the CAF Champions League