Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro urges the South African media to blast poor referees as they drew against Moroka Swallows on Tuesday. Pirates played to a 1-all stalemate at Dobsonville Stadium during the week, Riveiro calls on the media to solve refereeing issues.
The Spaniard is preparing his men to face Golden Arrows at Orlando Stadium this weekend, but he is unhappy about referees. The reigning Nedbank Cup title holder, Riveiro is desperate to see changes from the men in the middle of the park.
Riveiro Desperate for the Media to Call Out Referees
The Buccaneers were forced to rally for a point as Patrick Maswanganyi cancelled out Nkosinathi Sibisi’s goal. A fuming Riveiro called on the media in his post-match press conference, urging the press to ask questions about the deteriorating standard of refereeing in the country.
It’s not the first time the Spanish mentor has made such remarks, but he was compelled to reiterate his comments with Pirates dropping points and feeling referee Michael Mosemeng got a few calls wrong.
“The referees are not camping with us and they are not in training with us, our energy must be dedicated to playing football. Luckily we have the journalists to analyse, find conclusions, and maybe put some light,” said Riveiro per SABC Sport.
“Our job is to entertain the people and to win games, luckily we have you to talk about other things around the games.”
Riveiro Cagey About Poor Refereeing Against Swallows
The coach whose side failed to close the gap on log leaders, Mamelodi Sundowns, was cagey to elaborate on what he meant when he argued winning the DStv Premiership was “a huge challenge”. Riveiro was also unclear when pressed to elaborate but preferred to say he understood the reasons behind Nkosinathi Sibisi being red-carded.
“I know what happened but it belongs to a different space, I cannot tell you the terms of the conversation between a match official and my player,” added Riveiro.
“But again it is a situation of clear disadvantage, when you have a conversation with the referee because you don’t decide the terms, that’s exactly what happened.”
With Golden Arrows at Orlando Stadium this weekend, Riveiro wants his players to concentrate on winning games in the chase for CAF Champions League qualification this season.
As things stand, the Buccaneers are placed at number four on the log table with 34 points from 22 matches to ensure their return to CAF football is a possible dream.
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