Jose Riveiro says Tshegofatso Mabasa's contribution goes beyond scoring goals

Mabasa has scored eight goals and contributed with three assists since his return to Pirates at the beginning of this year.

The Bafana Bafana striker was on loan to Moroka Swallows for the first half of the season, but he’s now back at Bucs and firing from all cylinders and Riveiro says he offers more than just scoring goals.

"One more piece in our structure, an important one right now. I'm happy when the players especially the forwards are delivering goals but especially getting the responsibility in the last meters. Constantly he's offering us other options and possibilities for the players that are playing around, for our number 10s, it's helping us to be aggressive in our pressing, he's the first defender of the team when we don't have the ball," Riveiro said.

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Mabasa has scored five goals in the last four matches in the league for Pirates and is now tied on 11 goals as a joint top goal scorer with Mamelodi Sundowns’ Lucas Ribeiro and Cape Town City’s Khanyisa Mayo. 

Riveiro says the former Bloemfontein Celtic striker has also benefitted from the pressure and the support of the strikers he’s competing with at the club.

"It's contributing to the role that we assigned to the number 9 position and so far he's doing well but he's also doing well because the ones who are behind, the ones who are not playing recently, they're training very well, they're putting pressure, they want to be there as well and they are working for it.

“So, in the end, only one can go to the field but this is a team, everybody is working to make it possible and the ones who are going to the field, have all of our support and he's not an exception."