Jose Riveiro reveals he took Orlando Pirates job full of optimism

Now that the Spaniard has won the MTN8, reached the final of the Nedbank Cup after beating rivals Kaizer Chiefs and on course to finish second in the DStv Premiership, which would seal a CAF Champions League spot – his work speaks for itself.

Riveiro says he was confident coming in.

"I'm a very optimistic guy, very positive even though I don't look like that sometimes. I promise you; I always think that everything is going to be alright. In sports, you have to go with that mentality in my opinion, wherever you are you have to approach your life and profession with that mentality and make sure that you can convince the people around you that everything is possible. Otherwise, what kind of leader am I," he said.

The 45-year-old believes with the team assembled; the expectation was for the Buccaneers to compete for honours this season.

"It's possible because I have fantastic material and I have a lot of quality. That's why I cannot make miracles, it's not about me, it's about the whole group. It's the coaching staff, it's the players. I'm happy today but I promise you, I'll be much happier in three weeks if we manage to qualify for the Champions League," the coach explained.

Riveiro did attempt to move the focus away from himself, although that will be tricky given what has turned out to be a successful first year at Pirates.

"It's nice to be in the finals and I think that Pirates should be regularly in every final so I'm not doing anything exceptional. Now we have to go to the final with all our capacity and concentration and do everything to get it done."