Jose Riveiro head coach of Orlando Pirates during the DStv Premiership 2022/23 match between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs held at at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on 29 October 2022. © Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix.
Orlando Pirates: Three MTN8 final selection dilemmas for Riveiro
Orlando Pirates manager Jose Riveiro has some serious thinking to do ahead of tomorrow’s MTN8 final. Here are three dilemmas he faces.
Jose Riveiro head coach of Orlando Pirates during the DStv Premiership 2022/23 match between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs held at at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on 29 October 2022. © Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix.
With a few players returning to the fold, Orlando Pirates boss Jose Riveiro has some big decisions to make in the MTN8 final.
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Three selection headaches facing Orlando Pirates boss Riveiro
Pule an option on the flanks
30-year-old Vincent Pule is back in full training and knows a thing or two about winning this tournament. He missed almost 10 months of action last term with a thigh muscle rupture, and he’s been nursed back to fitness in 2022-23.
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Pule has made just seven appearances in the DStv Premiership this season and only appeared twice in MTN8 competition, but he did open the scoring in Pirates’ pulsating MTN8 quarterfinal win over Royal AM. Monnapule Saleng, six years Pule’s junior, has scored four goals in his last thee outings including a brace against Sundowns. He’s a certain starter and was yesterday rewarded with a Bafana call-up.
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Perhaps Deon Hotto’s place on the left wing could be taken by fit-again Pule? It will boil down to how much defensive balance Riveiro wants on that flank, and Hotto certainly provides that.
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Riveiro to risk skipper Maela?
Innocent Maela hobbled off in the first half of Pirates’ Soweto Derby defeat with a hamstring injury. He’s a major doubt for tomorrow, but Jose Riveiro might take a gamble on him with no competitive matches on the immediate horizon. Then again, Maela has been called up by Bafana Bafana. It’s a tricky one.
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The ideal partner for Miguel Timm and striking a balance in attack
Miguel Timm’s suspension in the Soweto Derby hurt Pirates and their balance in midfield, so they’ll be delighted to welcome him back here. If Riveiro persists with a 4-4-2, he’ll need to find a diligent central midfield partner for Timm. Ndabayithethwa Ndlondlo will start the match regardless of the system that Riveiro employs, but maybe Goodman Mosele is a candidate to dovetail with Timm in the engine room.
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It’s going to be fascinating to see how Riveiro will accommodate all of his talented stars in the same 11. Further forward, he’ll only be able to select four of Zakhele Lepasa, Kermit Erasmus, Monnapule Saleng, Vincent Pule, Fortune Makaringe and Deon Hotto in attack, from the start that is. Riveiro could also revert to the 4-1-4-1 that served him so well against Sundowns in the semifinal second-leg. In that instance, Makaringe was brought infield alongside Ndlondlo with Timm anchoring midfield behind them.
An intriguing contest awaits us at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
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