Orlando Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro has urged his players to move on from the Soweto Derby win and focus on advancing to the Nedbank Cup quarterfinals.
The Buccaneers came from behind twice to earn a 3-2 win over Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday, completing a league double over their fierce rivals. They face Hungry Lions in the Round of 16 this weekend.
Ahead of the match, Riveiro has raised concern about the win over Amakhosi, arguing that it may distract players.
“The distractions after the derby are many. People are still talking about this and that, and it’s normal, but we need to already visualize ourselves playing the next game and put the derby behind us,” Riveiro told a press conference in Parktown on Wednesday.
Riveiro believes the games being played ahead of the FIFA break could complicate their preparations.
“The FIFA break is also coming, and players will be going to national teams, so there are a lot of factors and elements that I suppose can be distracting, and when you are distracted, you don’t compete at your best.
“So it’s our responsibility to make sure they are on the right track by keeping them motivated and understanding the responsibility for us on Saturday, because we want to be in the next round. We want to defend the trophy, so we must keep our feet on the ground,” Riveiro added.
The Spaniard also emphasized that his charges would not take their opponents lightly.
“The opponent may be playing in the second tier, but we know the story about these games [referring to the upsets that have been part of the Nedbank Cup]. So we will approach the game with maximum respect,” Riveiro added.
