Riveiro takes aim at retaining Nedbank Cup title

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro has promised to give a stout defence of their Nedbank Cup title ahead of a Last 32 clash against fourth-tier Crystal Lake at the Mbombela stadium on Saturday.

Pirates defeated Sekhukhune United 2-1 in the 2023 decider at Loftus stadium and having earlier this season retained their MTN8 title, Spanish coach Riveiro is hoping to do the same in the Nedbank Cup.

“We are defending the title,” he said. “It is a competition that I really like. We will prepare ourselves as usual and we are going to take the game very seriously because we had an experience last season playing against (lower league) opponents like Dondol Stars, All Stars and Venda Football Club. It was not an easy part for us.

“We know clearly what is the objective for us and we are going to fight the same way we did against Sundowns (in a 1-1 league draw on Saturday).”

Only once before has a fourth-tier side defeated topflight opposition in the Nedbank Cup – when Vaal University of Technology edged Lamontville Golden Arrows on penalties following a 2-2 Last 32 draw in 2020.

Pirates have lost to an amateur side before, they were famously beaten 4-1 by Maluti FET College in the opening round in 2013, still one of the great shocks in South African football history.

Sundowns, meanwhile, are preparing for a Last 32 clash at second-tier La Masia on Tuesday night and coach Rulani Mokwena admits he can take nothing for granted.

“We are looking forward to it. It’s an interesting team that we will be playing against and well-coached,” he said. “Dane Klate and his technical team have done a good job to put the team together. To reach this stage of the competition means they have something. So, we know how difficult playing NFD teams can be. That’s why we have to work very hard to profile the team.”

Mokwena says there will likely be rotation of players in his team, but says that does not mean they are taking the fixture lightly.

"We have to try to put the best team on the pitch, and we will try to do that. There might be a couple of rotations, yes,” he said.

“There were a lot of rotations in the previous game, too. So we will rotate and see what we can get out because you also have a very difficult programme coming up in the next couple of weeks just before the Fifa break.

“So we got to try to make sure that everybody is prepared and ready. We can go into our resources from a playing personnel point of view.

“But let’s see, we have a couple of injuries at the moment. also, after the Pirates (on Saturday) game, we also got a couple of concerns. It was a very difficult game from a physical perspective. So let’s see what we can put together.”

Klate is a former Nedbank Cup competition winner with SuperSport United and Pirates, and is hoping to mastermind a huge shock with Westbury-based La Masia.

“It’s a big occasion, a good experience for La Masia, it’s a David and Goliath situation, for us it’s an honour to face Mamelodi Sundowns to see where we are as a team,” Klate said.

“It’s the perfect opportunity to test ourselves against one of the best in South Africa if not Africa’s best. I don’t think Sundowns can be weakened, they have a full squad that has the aspiration to win trophies on the world stage, win the Champions League and play in the Fifa Club World Cup.

“Our ambition is to get in the PSL, where Sundowns is currently, I don’t there’s a lack of hope, there should always be hope. We can’t go into a game and just roll over and say we’re playing Sundowns.

“It’s my duty as a coach and technical team, myself and Moeneeb (Josephs) to encourage these boys and motivate them as much as they can to show heart and passion tomorrow.”